The Ember Island Lighthouse: A Beacon of Insanity
by Loopy777
Summary: A collection of short stories, united only by a LOOPY creative drive that makes for a unique, insightful, and often humorous experience. Now featuring a tale of the Fire Nation's Royal Family and the dynamics of their gaps.
1. The Way Toph Sees It

**The Way Toph Sees It**

"I don't get why everyone was so mad.

"I mean, they argue all the time. And not mean arguing, either. It's that, 'Pay Attention to Me!' kind of arguing, the kind that sounds more like teasing. You know, what's the word? FLIRTATIOUS!! That's the one. They were always so flirtatious.

"And, it's not like I had the visual clues anyone else would have. I don't know nothing about eye color, or hair color, or skin tone, or facial structure, or any of that junk. Well, I guess I would know about faces, but I wasn't about to be asking to put my hands all over their mugs when we had just met. It's not polite, you know? So all that evidence went out the door.

"And, I mean, I didn't get out much. I didn't know what lovers acted like, or what siblings acted like, because honestly I'd never had friends, never mind boyfriends, and unless my parents were really good at keeping secrets, I didn't have any brothers or sisters. So, cut me a little slack, right?

"Anyway, if things were so innocent, I don't know why everyone freaked out like that. It's not like I said anything dirty, which I could have, if I wanted to. I just asked, all innocent-like, if Sokka and Katara were dating.

"That's no excuse to call me names."

**END**


	2. Sunset

_This was my winning entry for ASN's brand new Avatar Drabble contest. The prompt was as follows..._

_Theme: Sunset  
1. Beauty- A sunset is one of the most beautiful sights to see. I want to be able to feel the warmness of the sun on my skin, to see the orange and deep red of the sinking orb, and to picture the purple and pink clouds melting into the sky as the sun goes down.  
2. Emotion- A sunset is usually a sign of romance, the day ending, calmness and serenity. Pic something like this, and portray that in your drabble.  
3. Creativity- Try to think of something out of the box. I want you to really think about what you're writing. Stretch your mind._

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**SUNSET**

The world died every day at sunset.

The light slowly drained away from the sky and land and the sea, leaving behind only darkness. The clouds in the sky, the textures of the leaves on the trees, the scattering of rocks and sands and grasses that made up the Earth, the rhythmically lapping waves and the foam that rode them- all of these things became invisible to even the most piercing eyes. Sight is nothing more than reflected light, and no flame or crystal or tiny fly is bright enough to fight back the night.

The world disappeared every day at sunset.

With the light, went its gentle heat. Light was more than just illumination; it was energy, and everything absorbed that energy like a thirsty sponge in the deepest ocean. Few things in the world, though, kept that energy for themselves. Almost all the objects on the Earth, even the Earth itself, shared the energy in the form of soothing warmth. Living creatures were no exception, and they above all else rejoiced in the exchange of heat. Yet when the Sun went down, the energy was gone from the very air, and what was once given freely became something to hoard… and to steal.

The world froze every day at sunset.

During the day, the sky is beautifully opaque, sometimes a soothing shade of blue, other times a resilient gray. The only thing that flies through the greatest heights during the day is the Sun itself; nothing else can even approach its splendor. Clouds and rains might pass beneath it, but the Sun still sails above all, always glowing through even the thickest obstacle. Whenever humanity needs a sign, a waypoint, a helpful guide, its members need only look up, and the Sun will be there to help. Once it is gone, the sky sheds its colors, and the chaotic stars rampage across the heavens. The stars cannot overcome the clouds, or the rains, or even the pathetically tiny constructions of mankind. Even when the stars can be seen, they are so shifting and scattered that only the most clever and educated can read them.

The world becomes an enemy at sunset.

To Sokka, it is an indisputable fact- the world died every day at sunset.

Yet, he does not fear death or the dead. Sokka could march into the darkest, coldest, most hostile night, and stand boldly with his back straight and his face looking forward. For, even in the land of the dead, there is someone he can trust to love him forever, and keep watch over him. When Yue gave up her life at the North Pole, in the Sacred Oasis, she became the Spirit of the Moon.

The Moon cannot rise until the Sun has set.

So, every day, he watches the sunset with contentment. As the world disappeared in the dark, froze in the cold, and became an enemy overhead, he simply enjoyed the sight for what it was, and awaited the arrival of his first great love. It wouldn't be until late into his adult life that he could put the phenomenon, and his feelings, into words.

"The world dies every day at sunset. But death can be beautiful, too."

**END**


	3. The Obvious Choice

**The Obvious Choice**

The sun shown down on the balcony, energizing the red highlights all over the Royal Courtyard. The blue sky and white clouds were the only relief from the dreadful black architecture. Aang sighed and saw none of it.

Mai eyed him. "That's usually my line."

The monk did his best to push a polite smile on to his face. "I'm just a little disappointed. I was so sure Ty Lee may have been descended from the Air Nomads at some point. You know, because she's so jumpy. But all of my testing with her has shown nothing. She doesn't even have the slightest bit of Airbending chi."

Mai's own smile was small but genuine. "I just noted you were sighing like me, I didn't ask for the details of your latest love affair."

"WHA-?!?"

Mai sighed. "Relax, I was joking."

"Oh."

The silence that followed was as awkward as any Mai had perpetrated. She sighed again. "So why were you so sure Ty Lee was a secret Airbender. Just because she's agile?"

The seemed to reaquire the monk's interest. "I've found records, of a traitor to the Air Nomads, who came to live in the Fire Nation. I thought he might have had some descendants, you know, who weren't all killed or in hiding, and Ty Lee's features were so non-Firey..."

Time for another shot. "Ugh, I don't want to hear any more about Ty Lee's features."

"No!" Aang's blushed contrasted strangely with his arrow tattoo. "Not like that! I meant-"

"Me. Joking." This was getting depressing. "You're not very bright, you know that?"

His scowl was becoming fiercer. "Thanks."

"No, really. You have no understanding of Fire Nation humor, and you missed a real live Airbender who's been right under your nose the whole time."

It took a second to catch up. "Um... ?"

"You think Ty Lee jumps like an Airbender, but did you ever wonder how I can throw a little knife with such force that it can yank a grown man off his feet and drag him to be pinned to a wall?"

Maybe more than just a second. "Wait..."

She couldn't stop herself now, even if she wanted to. "No one can throw that hard. But with a little extra wind power..." She waved her hand, and a slight breeze passed over Mai and the Avatar.

His jaw couldn't have dropped any lower without broken bones.

She couldn't resist one last zinger. "So what do Air Nomad 'features' look like anyway?"

He was still beyond a response. Mai smirked. At least he wasn't stealing her sighing-shtick anymore.

END


	4. The Haunting of Ba Sing Se

_I wrote this piece for the ASN's Halloween exchange last October. My secret recipient was arasam22, who listed Irko (non-romantic) as one of her favorite relationships. I'm still new to poetry, but I think this came out pretty well._

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**The Haunting of Ba Sing Se**

Slowly crept the mute Blue Spirit.  
He used the Dark, did not fear it.  
His swords were tied to body black,  
Defense in case the Light struck back.  
Slowly crept the mute Blue Spirit.

Many nights had seen his visage,  
Only donned to haunt and pillage.  
This time he ghosted Ba Sing Se,  
To taint false peace with mischief fey.  
Many nights had seen his visage.

Ba Sing Se was brimmed with fear.  
Unwary souls could disappear.  
Demons controlled this gilded place,  
To eyes they were of human race.  
Ba Sing Se was brimmed with fear.

The wise stayed home where love could shield.  
Towards thieves and spies, the doors were sealed.  
Yet Spirit Blue did brave the night,  
To enact a plan of pure spite.  
The wise stayed home where love could shield.

A modest shop had raised his ire,  
He willed revenge of purging fire.  
In day they came to sip hot tea,  
Unmasked he served on bended knee.  
A modest shop had raised his ire.

No walls or locks could keep him out,  
He always found a hidden route.  
He slipped inside as midnight passed.  
The time for flame was coming fast.  
No walls or locks could keep him out.

He sensed that he was not alone.  
In back he saw a candle shone.  
Iroh was working a late shift,  
To blend the leaves so sure and swift.  
He sensed that he was not alone.

Why would his Uncle be here late?  
He should be home, full and sedate.  
Did love for tea rob him of sleep,  
Or devils in his dreams did creep?  
Why would his Uncle be here late?

Blue Spirit did fly, unfulfilled.  
He could not risk Iroh be killed.  
Alone again the old man smiled,  
Pleased to outsmart his wayward child.  
Blue Spirit did fly...

...unfulfilled.

**END**


	5. Safe

_Yet another idea that came from Avatar Spirit's Shipping thread..._

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**Safe**

Azula opened her eyes. Stupid Mommy was still sitting the cell across from her. With a huff of annoyance, the young princess spoke. "You can leave, you know. I don't need two of you."

Stupid Mommy's smile nearly faltered. "I'm the only one here."

That's why Stupid Mommy was Stupid Mommy. "I know that, Dum Dum. Smart'n'Mean Mommy isn't here right now because I broke the mirror again. Once Zu Zu has another one sent, she'll be back. And he will send one. It's the only thing he can do for me now, and he doesn't want me to be sad because he thinks I'm sad too much. But I don't think so. I smile sometimes when I get a new mirror, and sometimes I like sending Smart'n'Mean Mommy away, too."

"Oh," Stupid Mommy cooed, "there's no need to be sad. Here in Ba Sing Se we are safe."

That's why Stupid Mommy was Stupid Mommy. "No, we're not, Dum Dum. We're in the Fire Nation. Well, I am, at least. You left during the war, and sometimes I see you when Zuko and the others say you aren't really there, so maybe you're in Ba Sing Se."

"How could I leave during the war? There is no war. Here in Ba Sing Se, we're safe behind the walls."

"I hate you," Azula declared amiably. "My other Mommy is really mean, but at least she knows there's a war. I don't care if people hate me, so long as they're smart about things. If Zuko and Mai and Ty Lee had been smart, we would have won the war and be happy right now."

"There is no war in Ba Sing Se." Stupid Mommy's perpetual smile became even wider.

Azula just sighed, and crawled over to the shards of the broken mirror to hug them. Now she missed Smart'n'Mean Mommy. She hoped Zuko sent a new mirror soon.

Ursa, sitting her cell across from her daughter, saw the mirrored shards cut Azula's skin as she hugged them. The princess wasn't trying to hurt herself, but it happened away, unnoticed. Ursa would have been more concerned, but her eyes were obviously lying. How could Azula be cut and bleeding if she was safe here in Ba Sing Se?

**END**


	6. Mai and Sokka's Tall Tale

**Mai and Sokka's Tall Tale**

Sokka had been surprised to discover that not only did the Fire Nation understand and make use of the concept of a vacation, they had a rather long one set by ages of tradition at a rather convenient time of year. When the hottest month of the summer rolled around, the Capital City effectively shut down and all the nobles retreated to their vacation estates to make the best of the weather. Most service business throughout the Fire Nation also closed down, but of course farmers and merchants were simply left to endure.

For the more privileged, especially the personal friends of Fire Lord Zuko, that meant a hot and sweaty vacation opportunity that was simply not to be missed. Everyone was staying at the Fire Lord's private complex on Ember Island, even his little sister Azula who was recovering nicely from her brain surgery and seemed to be completely reformed except for a new tendency to giggle all the time (which everyone decided to take as a good sign since they couldn't figure out what it meant).

Many interesting things happened to the group during this vacation, if one considered romantic and general comedy to be interesting. A particular incident (of several, perhaps- it all depends on the fickle nature of whatever power arranges for these things to happen) involved Sokka of the Water Tribe and Mai of the Fire Nation.

The whole group had been playing a game that Sokka didn't entirely understand but consisted of his friend Toph getting to throw a light inflatable ball at everyone else while they ran for cover on the hot shadeless beach. There didn't seem to be much point other than that but everyone was enjoying running around and Toph was enjoying beaning her friends with all her strength and so the game continued throughout the afternoon. At several points there were brief brakes whilst the participants caught their breath, and during one of these Sokka found himself standing next Mai.

Mai had never really been friends with Sokka or any of the others (aside from Zuko, of course, who claimed to have been dating the girl for over a decade despite their young age, and Ty Lee and Azula, who claimed to have been friends with the girl for over a decade despite her lack of conversational skills) prior to their post-war get-togethers, and she had made no real attempt to connect with any one of them since then. Everyone else, in turn, was reluctant to attempt to connect with a girl who always spoke in a monotone, dressed in dark colors specifically chosen for their ability to depress people, and played with knives with a disturbingly intense passion. At this particular moment, though, Sokka suddenly found Mai to be an object of great interest.

Specifically, Sokka found Mai's color to be altogether baffling. She was wearing proper (not counting the depressing color) beachwear, but despite the considerable amount of her skin that was exposed to the sun, her pale unhealthy pigmentation was completely unaffected. She wasn't tanning at all, despite her hours in the sun, nor was she even the least bit red, like poor Toph who was going to discover later why lightly-complexioned people should cover up a bit at this time of year. In fact, despite all the running everyone had been doing, and the unrelenting heat of the sun, she wasn't perspiring, and her hair was completely unmussed. It was as though she had just stepped out of the ridiculously well-appointed house and onto the beach for the first time this instant.

And so in his surprise Sokka found himself staring in a rather intense manner at Mai. Even worse, he was staring at the the bits of her body that were currently uncovered with a degree of concentration that would have had her boyfriend Zuko exhaling fire and not just to amuse everyone like he did the previous night when they were roasting marshmallows.

Then Mai picked up on his attention.

Without otherwise moving, her eyes swung to take in her one-person audience. The act should have only taken an instant and been completely silent, but somehow it seemed to Sokka to be a slow process that hung in time long enough for fear to completely blanket his soul, accompanied by the sound of polished marble sliding easily against smoothed granite. Then she spoke, her voice even and cool, a sound that Sokka always considered an appropriate accompaniment to the sight of two slabs of ice attempting to mate and not enjoying the process at all.

"What?"

Sokka couldn't keep his own voicing from rising in fear, just a little bit. "How are you not baking in all this sun and heat? Even Katara and I are practically hard boiled by now. Hey, even Azula is breathing hard."

Mai eyes locked onto his own. She still hadn't moved. "My body can't be affected by a something as petty as a hot day. Haven't you heard the legend?"

Sokka shook his head.

Mai spoke. "I'm a direct descendant of the Spirit of Death herself. Long ago, Agni the Spirit of the Sun found his heart gripped by loneliness. He wanted love, but no other Spirit could withstand him. He had attempted to love the Spirit of the Earth, but her rock skin had turned to lava in his presence and all the plants burned, so she forced him away. He had tried to love the Spirit of the Seas, but she had boiled at his touch and life everywhere choked, so she shrank from him. He had even presented himself to the whimsical Spirit of the Air, but his shine had filtered through her and blinded all living things on the planet, so she spurned him. Agni could not bear the thought of being alone for all of time, so he stopped rising and left the world in eternal night. The Moon, who was graceful and beautiful but was already pledged to forever dance away from Agni in the sky, saw that the balance was disturbed, so she took action and went to the one spirit she knew could withstand the sun's touch. She found the Spirit of Death, and brought her to where the sun lay. Agni reached out a hand to her, and she took it, impressed by his majesty and his glow of Life, and she did not burn or dry. So cold was the touch of Death, she could even quench the fire of the Sun itself with her body. And so the Sun and Death fell in love, and knew happiness. But it could not last. Although Death herself was only slightly warmed by his scalding touch, none of the dead souls could tolerate the light when they approached Death for collection. Agni would not leave Death, so intense was his love for her, and Death could not bear to send him away. Balance was once again upset, so Death was forced to act. She took her long black hair, made of never-ending night, and cut several locks. She took these, hardened them in the freezing depths of eternity, sharpened them against the sturdiest mountains on the Earth, and used the blades to cut Agni's heart from his chest. No longer burdened by emotion, he left Death and continued his duties in the sky without fail. Death, however, was heartbroken at what had to be, and so she never took another lover, and shunned contact with all other Spirits. She settled in the Fire Nation, the mortals most devoted to her only love, living alone by day and going out at night to collect the dead souls. My family sprung from her, and we are revered as the most holy line second only to the House of the Fire Lord itself."

Sokka was dumbstruck. That was the most words he had ever heard Mai string together at one time. It probably put her over quota for the whole week. Finally, he found the strength to respond. "If Death never took another lover, how can you be descended from her?"

Mai's eyes softened as she looked at him. She moved slightly, for the first time since they spoke. "You're smarter than you look." Her mouth moved into a skewed line that might have been a smile.

Sokka found himself grinning. He believed he had just made a new friend.

Later that night, Toph was quite sunburned and cursed loudly about it, but still ate almost as many marshmallows as Sokka.

**END**


	7. Made for Each Other

**Made for Each Other**

Jet brandished his swords and offered a grin of pure malice. "There's no way I can make you suffer as much as all the Fire Nation's victims, but I'm going to give it my best try."

Zhao snorted. "Indeed. The arrogance of your people never ceases to amaze me. You're just a boy, living like a filthy animal in a tree, the son of two worthless peasants who added nothing to the world, fighting for a bankrupt nation held back by its own chaotic nature. And you think you can scare me?"

Jet's reply was a feral snarl and his opening attack. Despite his greater age, Zhao reacted swiftly, dodging around the hooked blades and blasting a fiery explosion at Jet's feet, knocking the boy back into a stumble. The Freedom Fighter opened his mouth for a taunt as he caught his balance. "Go ahead and keep talking, Firebender. It isn't going to stop me." He began circling the Admiral, his arms bending in front of him to position the swords defensively at ready.

Zhao smirked, and took a stance. "Come on, then. I've been feeling the need to smack around a loud-mouthed teenage brat for a while now."

Sharp flames whistled through the air, and smoking swords seared the grass.

**END**


	8. The Other Talk

**The Other Talk**

The talk had been good. Zuko now had friends he could go to, people who liked him and had shared in his experiences, but there was still a great comfort in going over it all for Uncle. The new Fire Lord took a sip of tea to refresh his throat.

Uncle took the opportunity to shift the subject. "So, I hear you've taken a lady friend..."

Zuko felt a warmth grow inside that had nothing to do with the tea. "Yeeeeaaaaah."

"Do I know her?"

"I think so. It's Mai."

Uncle's face scrunched as he tried to connect the name to a face. "The acrobat?"

"No! The gloomy one with the knives!"

"Ah yes. Her. I hope you don't call her that to her face." He thought about it a little more. "I would have thought you'd go for the acrobat. You had such a cute little crush on her when you were-"

"That was so long ago I can barely remember it," Zuko informed him. "There's no one but Mai now, and there's never been anyone but Mai."

"Ah. If you say so, nephew." Iroh paused only to a long draw from his cup. "Are you sure you've considered all the possibilities, though? Will she make you a good wife?"

Zuko was proud of how calmly he was taking this. His visit to the Sun Warriors had changed him profoundly, besides giving him a renewed belief in the concept of pants. "Uncle. When you were in prison and I was playing at being Father's prince, I was angry and lost. I was mean, mean to Mai. Eventually, I was able to admit that I was angry at myself. We talked shortly after that, and I told her part of the problem was that I missed having you in my life. She didn't say much; she never does in those situations. But after that, every time I was upset, she'd make tea. Jasmine tea. Just like you brew it. I never, you know, thanked her or anything, but it helped. And she didn't need my thanks." He looked Uncle in the eyes. "Do you understand, now?"

The older man put his cup down. "Yes, nephew, I do. You have made a good start. Pursue it, and see where it leads."

Zuko smiled in thanks.

Iroh picked his tea back up and finished it off. "You and the Waterbender would have made some handsome babies, though."

Zuko's cup didn't survive the fall.

**END**


	9. Silent Conversations

_This was the 2nd place entry for the latest round of the Avatar Drabble contest. The prompt was as follows..._

**_Silent Partner: OC + Canon Character Challenge  
The exercise is called "Silent Partner", from The 3 AM Epiphany, modified to meet your Avatar fan fiction needs:_**

Contemplate for a while, and then slowly write down, a conversation between several people in which one person says very little - or nothing at all. Make this silent partner a crucial part of the situation, and don't ignore the character just because s/he's not speaking.

My twist on this challenge is that the conversation should include at least one original character that you invent, and at least one character from canon, preferably, but not necessarily, one of the bigger characters (Aang, Zuko, etc.). All other characters participating in the conversation are Author's choice. They can be OC characters, cannon characters, mystical magical talking air bison...

Judging Criteria:

1) Well Developed OC - whether your OC is doing the talking or playing the silent partner, I want to have a basic sense of who this character is. It doesn't take long to make an impression. Think, for example, of Katara and Sokka finding Aang in the iceberg. That scene tells us just about everything we need to know about Sokka and Katara in 30 seconds. Or Toph's introduction... all she has to do it call the Boulder "The Pebble" and we know what she's about - and we haven't even seen her fight yet! I don't need to know your OC's lifestory by the end of the drabble, but I should have a good impression of their personality and what they're all about.

2) Show, don't Tell - what makes for better writing, "Katara felt afraid" or "Katara could feel her heart beating wildly inside her chest as she struggled to keep from jerking back like a spooked wolf-horse..." Describing what a character does to show us how they feel is always more effective than telling us that they feel.

3) Pacing - it can be hard to weave dialogue and description. Try to make sure you have a good balance of both, without having a section become bogged down by description piled on top of description covered in more description, or another section that breezes by because its all dialogue with barely any room for, "said Sokka." Which isn't to say that there won't be some sections that have more dialogue than other. Balance is the key.

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**Silent Conversations**

The Hall of the Fire Lord had been rebuilt several decades ago, after an accident of mysterious nature. Those few palace servants who couldn't keep their mouths shut about the circumstances were generously given free assistance with their commanded silence. Once stately in decor and brightly lit in the manner of a warm summer day, such an atmosphere was left in the dead past. Now, the Throne Room was built from glistening sealed wood, as dark in color as polished obsidian. The dimensions were massive enough to foster echoes of the slightest sound, but the pillars that towered over any visitors broken the rebounding sound into pathetic whispers. The Fire Lord's throne, covered in a gold canopy, was itself quite large, but the laughing flames separating it from the rest of the room dominated the scene. The Fire Lord appeared as a sinister shadow in the midst of blood-rust light.

Fire Lord Sozin had an audience.

"I commanded the three of you to find and destroy the greatest threat to the Fire Nation," he declared softly but harshly to the bowing figures. His aged, gravely voice was harshly discernable from the crackling fire around him. "I would hear of your failure. Li. Lo. You may rise."

The twin teenagers gracefully lifted their heads from the floor, settling into respectful crouches. Their eyes briefly met, and glanced down at the figure between them, still in a full bow. They spoke in their usual, eerie manner.

"Per the instructions of our Lord..."

"We set out from the Temple in the South."

"We consulted the captured lore of the Nomads..."

"And followed the winds in search of our target."

The twins delivered their closing report simultaneously, slowly, and with great fear. "Yet we could not find the last Airbender."

They could not see the details of the Fire Lord's expression, but the flaring fires were clue enough. His voice remained frighteningly even. "You two have served loyally, and I am pleased with your work. No one else in the whole of the Fire Nation could have read the Wind Lore of the Airbenders, but your wisdom and skills are just as great as I have heard. You will have further opportunity to serve me."

The young twins straightened their backs even further, prevented by protocol from expressing their pride and elation in any other way. Their eyes once again met, and reluctantly sunk to the woman still bowing between them. Her arms had to be tired, still positioned formally in a fan-like shape, but both remained strong and still.

Even the one missing its hand.

The Fire Lord spoke again. "No, my displeasure is for your companion. Tell me, Li, of the aid Mikkoku provided to you during the hunt."

"She... She was assigned as our warrior. My Lord... she was said to be a specialist in dealing with the Avatar."

"You remember well. I did indeed inform of you her special capacity. Lo, how did she make use of those skills, the skills that won her haven in my growing Empire, during your mission?"

"The Lady Mikkoku had no opportunity to use them. We did not find the Avatar. She had no knowledge of the winds, and so Li and I led."

"Well said. This is not the first time her supposed special knowledge has failed to be of use to me. I am as displeased as her former master must have been."

It was hard to tell, as Li and Lo could only see Mikkoku in their peripheral vision, but she seemed to twitch slightly at the pronouncement.

The Fire Lord's shadow leaned forward. "One last question for my loyal servants. Li, Lo... if you were to find the Avatar, how would you kill him?"

The twins spoke without hesitation, their voices trading off in easy cadence.

"The Avatar may be a great power with the ability to fly..."

"Yet he reports say he would be a child to the experienced eye..."

Their final pronouncement was confident. "And with proper planning, even a Spirit can be made to die."

Sozin gave one, echoing laugh. "Were but my advisors as wise as you two young ladies. You have summarized the situation perfectly. I think you would agree that we no longer have any need of our vaunted 'Avatar Slayer', eh?"

Mikkoku tensed, even as she remained bowing to the Fire Lord, ready for a fight. Li and Lo did likewise, in case the order came.

Apparantly, the Fire Lord was feeling generous. "The failure Mikkoku is hereby banished from the Fire Nation. The maimed and broken wretch is no longer welcome in my lands. Let her go to the Earth Kingdom, or back to her hidden home."

The woman rose silently. Li and Lo had to stifle smirks at how she couldn't even straighten in defiance with her twisted back, and her slight limp ruined any attempt at a proud retreat. How the failure could claim to kill an Avatar, neither could fathom. Members of the Crimson Guard fell into step behind the assassin, to ensure she left the capital without incident.

The Fire Lord's attention had already fallen from the silent outcast. "And now, my loyal subjects, let us discuss how you may avoid the same fate, in the future..."

The eyes of Li and Lo met once again, and many unspoken words passed between them.

**END**


	10. Zuko's Perfect Wedding

**Zuko's Perfect Wedding**

Zuko had to admit, things went pretty well. There hadn't been any fighting between the nobles and the foreign visitors, and as they night went on, the wine loosened their moods enough that there was even some friendly conversation between them. Aang had been the life of the party with his dancing, and Katara had been completely polite with Mai. Sokka had been planned for, and had been quite content to stuff his face and nod amiably at everyone near him. Toph had gotten bored quickly, but Zuko had anticipated that as well, and the drug in her tea had knocked her out an hour into things. Suki, of course, was such a perfect a guest, she was hardly worth mentioning. Even Ty Lee wasn't too loud.

If only the bouquet hadn't been caught by one of the Royal Crimson Guard. Granted, with thirty members present to keep Azula in line, the odds were in their favor. And Mai didn't seem to care. But Zuko couldn't help but consider a tiny failure.

It bothered him.

The guard was elated.

**END**


	11. Higher Calling

**Higher Calling**

"How was it, the first time?"

Ty Lee didn't answer at first, lowing her gaze and staying silent.

"Please? I need to know."

She flipped into a handstand, but didn't turn around, so that he couldn't see her face. "The backlash hurt. I cried for a whole day, afterward. Azula didn't like that, so she made me do it every day after that until it didn't matter anymore. She had me use Zuko, but when their mother found out I had to stop and only use other kids at school."

Aang considered that. "At first it wasn't bad for me. I was proud that I came up with a way to stop Ozai without hurting him. But as time passed, it started to bother me. The feel of it didn't go away. The adrenaline high faded, my elation at our victory faded, even my love for Katara faded, but the sense of his chi didn't. It's all I can taste, now."

Ty Lee swung back down into a crouch and looked at him. "But do you feel bad about it?"

"I didn't at first. But..."

She waited.

"...I realized a while ago that it felt like this for him, only worse, and while I have my own Bending to sustain me, he had nothing."

She nodded. "Have you cried yet?"

"No."

"I think you need to."

He closed his eyes and nodded in agreement, and with that action, all the feeling manifested in the physical world as tears and sobs. It got more intense as he continued, until it was almost painful, and Ty Lee felt compelled to hold him until he stopped.

They were never seen by mortal eyes again.

**END**


	12. The Democracy of Omashu

_Yet another 2nd place win for Avatar Spirit's Drabble Contest. The prompt was..._

**Theme - Democracy**

**"We all know that there are a lot of powerful people in the Avatar world who were not appointed by the people, including many of the good guys. So I want you to explore what happens when people don't fall in line with the desires of their king/chief/fire lord/avatar etc."**

******Judging Criteria**  
1 - Conflict - I want at least two opposing intellectual/moral positions (multiple contradictory positions being held by one character is fine).  
2 - Show, don't tell. - Just like Grey Fable's challenge. Although this is an ideological theme, try and avoid having characters just giving each other lectures.  
3 - Moral turmoil. - I want to see characters struggling with figuring out what path to take. Extra points for subtlety and complexity.

* * *

**The Democracy of Omashu**

When Bumi felt he was ready, he challenged the King Of Omashu to an Earthbending duel.

It was his legal right, of course. Omashu may have been a peaceful city, but in the time before time, the ancestors of its people had been warriors, fierce and merciless. Although a love for Earthbending had replaced the love for taking life, there was still a hereditary toughness that had persisted, and a fondness for the city's peacekeeping warriors as strong as for its Benders. Being the ruler of the original home of Earthbending, Omashu's monarch was expected to be a formidable Bending fighter. Not the greatest, necessarily, as the Challenge Law was only invoked at the greatest need.

That's why everyone was surprised when Bumi made his bid for Kingship.

He didn't bother proclaiming his reasons, or even saying anything about the King at all. When asked why he was making the challenge, he just replied, "Don't you think it's a good idea?" No one ever answered him back.

He won, naturally. There was, and never would be, an Earthbender quite like Bumi.

Upon taking the throne, he supposed that something placating to the people, like a holiday or citywide feast, should be declared, just to keep everyone happy. Really, though, he had a lot of things we wanted done, and there was a war on. Revelry like that needed a good reason, something other than a lunatic stealing control of one of the Earth Kingdom's greatest City States. A hanging might be more appropriate, but Bumi couldn't think of anyone he wanted dead at that time, at least amongst the city's prisoners.

The palace staff did whatever he told them. That was lots of fun. They learned to stay on their toes, and be ready to do anything while keeping a respectful straight face. Some may have even learned to enjoy themselves (it was hard to say). The Peacekeepers were also very reliable, but a lot less fun. Bumi couldn't risk ruining the people's (or the enemy's) respect for the Omashu soldiers.

The people themselves were a different matter. They felt, if anything, a little trapped. There was a war outside, a nasty one. People were dying. Even Ba Sing Se was drawing into itself. (Bumi considered going over there and challenger _their_ King to a duel, but he didn't know if they had the same Law, and going all that way just to be disappointed didn't sound like a good use of time.) Yet here the people of Omashu were, stuck in a realm with a lunatic ruler who was too good a fighter to be deposed any time soon. His regular rides on the Mail Slides probably didn't inspire any confidence, either. That's why he made his little trips. As much as he might want to spend all day riding the world's greatest super slide, he would often emerge from his latest crash, dust himself off, and start walking and talking with whoever was around.

"So, what do you think of the current tax rate? I think it's a little low, especially if we want to fix those bridges. Good Earthbenders with that kind of fine skill don't come cheap, and I think we really need to look at them."

"I'm doing some urban renewal, and I was wondering what neighborhoods you thought I should look at. You're a merchant, you get around a lot, right?"

"Hey, you want to stay at the palace for the night? In the morning, I'd love it if you could do me a favor and tell me about how the rooms were. I think they're getting a little run down, and we want to make sure any guests of the city are good and comfortable, but I really don't want to tear the place apart unless I need to. I'll even give you dinner. We have fresh cabbage tonight."

"Hey, you look smart. Want to be a minister?"

The people found it a little disturbing at first, and to be sure, he was always making decisions that confounded and angered many. Yet there was still a sense of trust developing. They rarely understood it, but they found themselves doing whatever it was Bumi ordered without hesitation. (Complaining was another matter.)

"So that's why I consider my city a Democracy, young Toph. I may be King, but they all do what I say because they want to. I'm just their will, with all its strangeness and insanity, personified. The previous guy wasn't, so that's why I challenged him and tossed him out."

"So, I can challenge you right now, and become Queen of Omashu if I beat your old butt?"

"Sure! But watch out! Even if you win, you might not be in charge. How many around here will take orders from a little girl?"

"What about the people of the Fire Nation. They did what Fire Lord Ozai ordered because they wanted to? That was a democracy, too?"

"That's one way of looking at it. I can't really say. I've never had dinner with any of the people in the Fire Nation, so I don't know what they were thinking. It's too bad, because I used to like that spicy food when I was young. We didn't get any after the war broke out, and traveling there was just impossible, of course. Even Iroh was eating jook before we attacked Ba Sing Se."

"Unless I want be eating more than Sokka, I guess the only way to find out about this place is to beat you up and see."

"That's one way of looking at it. Good pun, by the way."

Toph twisted her feat, and the Earth loyally launched her at the mad king.

Bumi smiled.

**END**


	13. Can You See Him?

_Concept by ASN's High Elemental, ship by Luna-Cat-Kitty (ASN's Luna)._

* * *

**Can You See Him?**

"See? It's a tower like on the palace!"

"Wow! You're really good at blocks. They fall over when I do them that high. I can't ever do it right. I... I..."

"It's okay, Azula. I'm here so I can stack them for you. You don't have to worry about anything ever again. Now... do you want to knock them down?"

"Ha! I love you, Lu Ten!"

Iroh felt the breath flee his body, like a broken army racing from the devastation of the battlefield. Did he hear that right? Was she talking about his son?

"Mommy came today."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I should have been here."

"It's okay. You're here now."

"Good. I'm glad you're happy now."

"...Lu Ten?

"Yes, cousin?"

"I love you."

"You just said that. But I never get tired of hearing it."

"No, I mean... you know."

"Yes. As soon as you feel it, I know, Azula. I understand you like no one ever has. And I'll never leave you."

"Oh!"

"Are you okay?"

"I... it... you... I'm just... so happy... it's hard to talk..."

"Then don't. Come here and give me a hug. I'll just hold you. Do you remember that song, the one I used to sing?"

"Yes. That was before you left. You said Uncle would sing it to you. You sang it to Zuzu. I don't like it."

"You should, now. They never hear it anymore. Your uncle can't sing it to me, because he thinks I'm dead. And I'd never sing it to Zuko again. I'm all for you now, Azula. This song is all for you."

"Oh!"

"Yes. Now here, let me hold you. I'll sing. Just relax."

_She quieted. Was she asleep? Yet her smile was firm, not the weak leftovers of a pleasant dream. Then her voice sounded again._

"Ha! You want to sing, too, Azula?"

"Yes! I like the new words. Let's sing together!"

"Okay! We'll pick up where we left off... Braaave soldier girl, come marching home!"

_Iroh ran from the scene. It was hard enough seeing Azula this way, but to hear her voice, singing those words, echoing from the cold stones, as the chill air wrapped around his body..._

_Iroh ran._

**END**


	14. Smile

_This was an Irko Week 2.0 prompt. For more info, check out terrafan4242 at deviantArt.  
_

* * *

**Smile  
**

Smiles. That was the main difference between the two. No matter which server brought the tea, it was always delightful and well brewed. The quality of the pastries depended very much on which local bakery had been tasked with production that day, rather than the hands that delivered them to hungry customers. And the little shop's decor was always just a shade above squalor, as good as it gets in the Lower Ring, no matter what kind of people are around.

The difference was in the waiters. If the older one brought the order, it would always be accompanied by the brightest, widest smile in all of Ba Sing Se. If the younger one came carrying the tray, his scowl would be fierce enough to frost over the steaming tea.

Yet the two claimed to be related.

Each customer's reaction was different. Some of the younger customers preferred the angry nephew; he was good-looking, where he wasn't horribly disfigured, and he didn't waste their time with pointless niceties that could do nothing to end the war or balance the city's corrupt social structure. Most of the older customers delighted in the jovial uncle, because as good as his tea tasted, it was pleasant company they most craved at this point in their lives. Both demographics found it bewildering that the two men seemed to mostly get along, despite indulging in qualities that should by all rights drive the other away.

One day, a customer worked up the guts to ask her server about this. The answer came after a moment of thought.

"I'm holding on to his smiles, for when he wants them back. In exchange, he does all my frowning for me, so I don't have to. He's such a considerate nephew."

The customer couldn't deny that logic.

**END**


	15. Relaxation

_Yet another Irko Week 2.0 prompt. For more info, check out terrafan4242 at deviantArt.  
_

* * *

**RELAXATION**

Iroh scowled at the maps before him. He searched through the disorganized stack of intelligence reports, grumbling as he checked each one. Finding the report he wanted didn't improve his mood any, as the scouts confirmed the terrain in the area was very loose and easily manipulated by Earthbenders; any fighting there would finished only with great losses, regardless of whether victory was achieved.

Yet the war made its own demands, and Iroh could not always choose his battlefield.

At least he was here in the Fire Nation, where he had the benefit of the full Intelligence Archives, including a truly spectacular set of maps. Perhaps some more searching would reveal an alternate way to move his armies into the region, preferably one that would shield them from the scattered Earth Kingdom reinforcement opportunities in the area, and at the same time easily allow for a safe withdrawal if the assault had to be broken off...

...and while he was wishing, why not wish he didn't have to spend the rest of this increasingly long day in his study, and could instead go outside to enjoy the warm sun and beautiful gardens and maybe some pleasant company?

Soft padding sounded from the door, as the young Prince Zuko marched his way into the study, clutching a bundle of something. He walked comfortably over to the aging Prince Iroh's desk, and deposited his cargo, a number of tin soldier toys, on the floor. Looking up at his uncle, Zuko smiled. "Can I borrow an Earth Kingdom map?"

Iroh smiled back. "I believe I can spare one. Here." He handed Zuko the map he had just been looking at, the one with the fatal terrain. The younger prince took it, unrolled it out onto the floor, and began setting up his toys at what he considered to be strategic points on the sketch.

Iroh sighed, letting the bad air leave his lungs, and his body relaxed. Perhaps the study wasn't so bad, after all. He dived back into the assembled documents with renewed enthusiasm.

**END**


	16. Precious

_It's still Irko Week 2.0! For more info, check out terrafan4242 at deviantArt.  
_

* * *

**PRECIOUS**

The picture was a mystery to Zuko.

He had found it in Iroh's old quarters. The restored prince shouldn't have been anywhere near anything even remotely connected to his uncle, but no one ever said Zuko was smart (not even his girlfriend, although he didn't really blame her). It was all Iroh's fault, betraying the Fire Nation and refusing to recognize that Azula had finally won. Why couldn't he have just gone along with the situation, back under Ba Sing Se, and done what he felt he had to later? That was the way the former Dragon of the West had usually played things. But no, this time he had to make a stand, to sever all ties to the Fire Nation, and with his supposedly precious nephew. It was the former severance, though, that made it dangerous to be associated with Iroh. Zuko had only just won back his position as Prince of the Fire Nation, and any hints that he still sympathized with his imprisoned uncle could very quickly ruin all the good things that were happening for him.

Yet there Zuko had gone, sneaking into Iroh's dark and dusty room, for reasons not even he could identify. He had poked around the room, trying to feel his Uncle's prescence there. Certainly, there were enough of the man's things lying around. Scrolls, a few books, some musical instruments (Zuko's memory briefly flashed with the Tsungi Horn his uncle had bought just before their ship had been destroyed), a number of marked up maps, and of course a fancy tea set, amongst other clutter. As he perused all this, Zuko had found the picture, lying unframed atop a pile of parchments. It was a sketch of Iroh, specifically his face, with only a few light lines giving the impression of his chest. It was a decent likeness, Zuko decided, but he was surprised to see the hair shaded its current white. Iroh's hair had only lost its color after Lu Ten had died, and by that time, there were precious few people who would have even wanted a picture of the man. His wife and son were dead, and his parents, while his scornful brother was apathetic to his existence, and all his former friends moved on to more pressing matters. Zuko alone, out of all the people in Iroh's life, would have accepted a picture of him, but the two had been practically inseparable in all that time, living in the same palace, and later the same battleship. What need would Zuko have had for it?

Zuko had rolled up the picture, slipped it inside his sleeve, and hastily retreated from the dark room. Azula had caught him coming out of that particular wing, but couldn't have seen Zuko's prize. She just smirked and shook her head at him before moving on.

Unlike his picture of his mother, Zuko hadn't displayed Iroh's likeness.

When he finally left the palace and his false life to go restore his honor, Zuko left behind his mother, and took his Uncle.

As he struggled to fit in with the Avatar's group, his Uncle's face had been a touchstone of comfort. True, Zuko felt crippled with guilt every time he looked at it, remembering how he betrayed the only person in the world who truly loved him, but it was a precious kind of guilt. It reminded him that he was finally thinking the way he should. Whenever he had doubts, or frustrations, or questions he couldn't articulate, the young Prince could retreat to the privacy of his borrowed room in the Western Air Temple, and feel Iroh's wisdom flash in his memory.

The night he returned from the rescue mission at the Boiling Rock, Zuko didn't bother going back to his room to sleep. He just laid down in the airy courtyard with the rest of the Avatar's friends, finally feeling a sense of camaraderie with most of them. For one night, he was free from guilt.

He was awakened the next morning by a full military assault on the temple, led by his sister. Zuko did what he had to, and leapt forward to protect his new friends and allies. He almost died, plunging down to the unseen depths of the canyon, except salvation came and he somehow landed on Appa's saddle, Katara's hands firmly keeping hold of his arms.

There was no time to go back for possessions, no matter how precious.

They couldn't know, but after Zuko and the Avatar had fled, Azula ordered the Western Air Temple bombed out of existence. Iroh's picture burned when the stone walls crumbled around it.

**END**


	17. Family

**FAMILY**

Zuko's uncle was the first to congratulate them. He came at Mai with hug so kinetic, even Ty Lee would have found it intimidating. He practically bellowed, "Welcome to the family!" with a wide grin engaged in a fierce campaign to overtake his entire face.

Mai endured the hug, but with her arms pinned to her sides, she couldn't make even a token attempt to return it. "Thanks. Would this be the same family that contains Azula?"

Zuko frowned at that. "We expelled her when she tried to kill both of us."

Iroh still hadn't let go of Mai. Well, there were ways to work on that. "You still call Ozai your father, right?"

That caught Iroh's attention. "Actually, I think Zuko has given me that title as a backup, in case I ever tire of 'Uncle'. It was Toph's idea."

Mai took the opportunity to free herself as gracefully as she could without employing a knife. "That sounds like her. Does the creepy grandfather who wanted Zuko sacrificed still have a membership tile?"

Zuko and Iroh looked at each other. "Do dead people count?" her new husband wondered.

Iroh brightened. "That means we can remove Sozin, too."

"But then we loose Lu Ten and Roku," Zuko noted with a shake of his head. "We'll have to discuss that one."

Mai cut him off before that tangent could be explored. "And while there are some certain living family members I know you like, there's the slight problem of them not actually being here. Although," Mai continued before Zuko could say what he was thinking, "one or more may be joining us again at a future date."

Iroh nodded. "I think you've covered everyone."

"So who, exactly, is in this 'family' besides you two, and now me?"

Once again, Zuko and Iroh exchanged glances. This time, it lasted for a full minute before Iroh responded. "Can we bring Toph in?"

Zuko smirked. "Let's wait for her parents to officially disown her."

Mai gave one of her rare genuine smiles, and put her right hand on her new husband's shoulder, and her left on her new uncle's shoulder. "I like keeping it just the three of us. I'm supposed to suggest we get tea now, right?"

**END**


	18. Falling

**FALLING**

"I don't even know where to begin."

"While you decide, nephew, I could use a hand getting to my feet."

"My robe is ruined."

"Oh, it's not that bad. That red should clean up okay. True, it will smell like tea, but I don't think that's a bad thing. Spend enough time on the Burning Throne and you'll smoke that out, eventually."

"Uncle... you realize this was completely irresponsible of you?"

"I realize no such thing. I maintain that it was a good idea, well within my means, that suffered from a problem in the implementation. Next time, I'll know better."

"You should have known better in the first place! This is ridiculous!"

"Sometimes, in order to stay young, you have to risk being a little ridiculous. Make a note of that, nephew, and you'll last a long time."

"Don't smile like that. You're still in trouble."

"Oh, how could you say such a thing? I only had good intentions."

"Good intentions for yourself!"

"That counts."

"And now what are we going to do with it all?"

"It might be a little much for the drains, yes. Well, we can just heat it and evaporate it. I'll clean the tub out later."

"Ugh. Let me change first. I feel like a giant teabag."

"Nonsense. I use only fresh leaves, placed directly in the water."

"For this?"

"Yes, it took quite a bit. And now to see it all wasted..."

"You can afford more. Did you pay for it yourself, or out of the Jasmine Dragon's profits?"

"Myself. It was the honorable course."

"I suppose."

"Well, that settles it!"

"Stop laughing! I haven't decided if I'm still mad at you!"

"Very well, nephew."

"Where did you get the idea to make a giant cup of tea, anyway?"

"From Sokka, actually."

"Figures... and then to fall in it!"

"Are you still stuck on that? Well, I am very appreciative that you jumped in to save me, robes and all"

**END**


	19. AU

_Almost done with Irko Week 2.0! This was based on a "Style Guide," supposedly from 2005, that described the prototype Avatar world and story before it went into production. I don't know if it's real or not, but it had some interesting ideas..._

* * *

**AU**

The group settled behind a nearby rock, where they couldn't be seen from the path. Like all the stone in this area, it was made from glassy and misshapen lava rock, and within the next decade would disappear, melted and reabsorbed into the Fire Nation's hellish geography.

Everyone took a moment to catch their breath. When he could speak, Zuko revealed his brilliant plan. "You guys go. I'll stay and handle this."

The rest of his group did not apparently recognize his brilliance. The arrogant Earthbender boy, Toph, was the first to contradict him, as usual. "Um, how about no? That's a general and a whole lot of Firebenders back there. You're just one prince. And not a particularly tough one, I might add."

Katara, who Zuko understood to have an unusual sympathy with Toph, was quick to chime in. "Toph's right. You're proposing to sacrifice yourself, Prince Zuko. We won't abandon you. We've pledged to protect you while you teach Aang Firebending."

"Besides," Aang added, "you're our friend!"

Sokka said nothing.

Zuko nodded at the Water Tribe boy. "He knows." They all turned.

Sokka sighed. "This is bad, guys. They're not going to stop chasing us, and they outnumber us. Even with Aang, there's too many. Without any transport, we can't get away. But if we divert them with a prize they want just as much as the Avatar..."

"No!" Aang was livid. "We can't trade his life for mine!"

Zuko put a hand on the boy's shoulder, and tried to inject reassurance into his voice. He didn't have much practice at it. "Don't think of it as a trade. I saw my uncle back there. He and I have unfinished business. We would have had to do this eventually. Just be sure to take the fight to my father. And if I get... held up, smack my little brother around for me."

Aang was going to protest more, Zuko could tell, but Toph grabbed his arm and began pulling the Avatar away. "We'll do that, Prince Zuko. I'll personally make sure Azul gets what's coming to him."

Everyone began to pull away, except for Katara. She stared into his eyes in a way that was stronger than any argument. "We'll meet up again. Look for us at the port on Ember River, like we planned. I know we'll see you again."

Zuko nodded. "Katara, I just want to thank-"

"No! We'll see you again. I believed in you when you wanted to join us, and I believe in you now. The Ember River port. Remember it."

He smiled. "You were the first person to have that kind of confidence in me. I guess I can't let you down." She smiled back at him, and then was gone.

Zuko was alone.

It didn't take long to find some company, though. General Iroh was hurrying down the path, his Royal Firebender Guard following. Zuko waited for them in a defensive ready stance, his breathing deep and steady in anticipation of the bending he would have to do. "Uncle."

The older man stopped, and waved his Guard to stay with him. "Prince Zuko. Where is the Avatar?"

"Gone. I wanted to stay and settle this. They left."

Iroh scowled. "And you expect me to believe you have no idea where they went? Tell me now, nephew, and I give you my word of honor that I won't harm you before turning you over to the Fire Lord."

"How can you serve him? After all he's done?"

"And what would you know of it, Prince Zuko?" Iroh couldn't keep the derision out of his voice. "You, who have wandered the world for years, seeing things only from the perspective of our enemies? Has the Avatar told you of the supposed injustices our Nation has inflicted?"

"No, uncle. I saw the injustice here, in the Fire Nation, living amongst our people for the first time in my life. Our resources are being depleted, and our people are suffering as the lands are despoiled and made barren! Conscription is forcing our sons and daughters to leave and die!" Zuko could feel his anger growing. That was good. It would aid his Firebending. "And for what?!? A world that hates us? You would work to put everyone under the control of a man so evil, so heartless, that he would burn and exile his own son, and steal the throne from his brother! How can you serve him?!?"

Iroh waited until the echoes of Zuko's ranting had faded. "I am no fool, Prince Zuko. I deny none of what you say. But I have my duty. It is all that I have. You know what I have lost."

"Lu Ten." Zuko felt the anger drain from him, leaving a hollowness within. "Uncle, it's horrible that you lost him. But that's what everyone is going through, all over our nation. Forget about them," he nodded at the Royal Guardsmen who were staring in confusion and impatience at the scene, "and join the Avatar. Join me. You still have a family member left who cares."

Iroh came forward. The Guard made to follow, but a motion of his hand froze them. Iroh stopped when he was close enough that Zuko could hear his whisper. "You don't. You're weak, and unworthy of the throne. For years I trained you in Firebending, and you never knew the truth of it. Your father feared your power, thinking it a sign of your mother's bloodline. He had me train you in a corrupted form of Firebending. He and I both know the flaws in it. There is no chance that you, or anyone you trained, can fight us. Any Fire you command, we can dispel. You are nothing." The Dragon of the West smirked at his nephew. "Stand down now, and I will let you confront your father with honor. Resist, and I will remove your taint myself."

Zuko thought he would feel betrayed, crushed. His uncle had never been affectionate, but he had been the only person in their family to treat Zuko with anything but scorn. To learn that it had been an act from the very beginning, that there was no bond at all between Uncle and Nephew... Yet, when it came down to it, all the rage and shame that Zuko felt were springing from another source entirely.

Aang.

Aang wouldn't be able to defeat the Fire Lord. There was no time, before Sozin's Comet arrived, to correct the blunder Zuko had made.

There was a chance, though, that if Aang knew of his handicap, the Avatar would be able to guard against the disadvantage. It was a slim hope, but at this point, it was all Zuko had to motivate him to escape this trap alive. So he stoked the fires of his feelings, refining all the anger and shame into burning fuel, and focused all his hate and loathing at the man in front of him. There was no way Zuko would be able to escape, to get a warning to Aang, if he didn't take his uncle out of the fight here and now.

Permanently.

Iroh could dispel any Fire Zuko could command?

They'd see about that.

**END**


	20. Last Moments

**LAST MOMENTS**

Zuko and Iroh, uncle and nephew, teacher and student, friends, stood in the center of the Fire Lord's throne room. The fires of the Burning Throne were extinguished, and the cavernous chamber was lit only by a pair of small torches on the walls of the far sides. Nevertheless, the polished wood reflected a faint light bright enough to outline the silhouettes of the four occupants.

The Fire Lord spoke. "I find you both Guilty of the crime of treason. You will die, here, for your betrayal. Princess Azula, I think I will give you the honor."

The princess' eyes, suddenly strangely visible in the dark, darted from her father to the pair of prisoners bound at the center of the room. "Out of loyalty and devotion, father, I will burn these disgraces." She summoned her flames, a small heart of heat and light in each delicate hand, and world burst into visibility in shades of shadow and blue.

Iroh glanced at his nephew, and saw much. The boy kept his face under control, but Iroh read many things in the set of his jaw, the exact tightness of his muscles, the focus of his eyes. Zuko was not afraid. Instead, his heart was breaking. "Father..."

"No more pleas, Zuko", Azula whispered. "Salvage a little honor and die like the royalty you used to be."

The angle of his jaw shifted slightly, and Iroh could now see the anger growing in his nephew. "Zuko, stay strong."

"Uncle! You have a plan?"

"Actually, no. But we have done what we felt was right. I think we're done... here."

Zuko stared at him, for a long moment. The shadows abated before the blue, illuminating more with every step closer she came. It was a rather slow pace. Why was she hesitating? It didn't matter. Zuko had caught Iroh's meaning. "Here."

"Yes. I look forward to making the journey with a friend, this time."

"With family," Zuko replied.

Then Azula lit his face on fire.

Iroh couldn't help but cry out.

Then Azula killed him, too.

The fires of the Burning Throne flared.

_Iroh awoke with a start. He felt the rough rocks beneath him, and was struck anew by the horrible smell. He heaved a sigh of relief. Just a dream. For a moment, even though he was locked up and in his brother's power, he was glad that Zuko had turned against him under Ba Sing Se. At least this way, he was alive._

_...for now._

**END**


	21. Lioness

_This was another entry for ASN's Avatar Drabble Contest. I tied for third place. The criteria was..._

_Motherhood_

_Creativity: Please let us all not bask in the shadow of the two great avatar moms.  
Style: I am looking for a distinctive expression from all of you. Come at writing from a place all your own.  
Characterization: Let the characters shine and let their attributes be clear for the audience.  
Emotion: I want a tone I can believe in. I want an understanding, a feeling, of what has happened. Make me want to call home every weekend._

* * *

**LIONESS**

_"That's what moms are like. If you mess with their babies, they'll bite you back. "_

_- Lady Ursa, shortly before her exile from the Fire Nation for the crimes of Murder, Treason, Conspiracy, and Loving Her Son_

The annihilation of the Air Nomads, their culture, and their every resource was proceeding apace. There was a good reason for this. The attack had been in the making for over a decade, with the Fire Nation's greatest military minds poring over all available intelligence about the Nomads, and deploying the full strength of the military against them. Plus, the influence of The Comet couldn't be ignored. The attack force consisted primarily of Firebenders, and each and every one of them was currently capable of unleashing as much power as a fully realized Avatar. The Comet would be in the sky for another few hours.

In that time, an entire Nation would die.

There were many tragedies that day. One of note occurred at the Eastern Air Temple, at the Sunrise Launch. That was the doorway and balcony nearest to the Bison Stables, where Airbenders would ride their mounts into the newborn day.

No more.

The portal had been collapsed, stone chunks of the ancient temple now sealing another possible escape for burning Nomads of all ages. Some of the temple's residents were still making their way out of that side of the temple, though. Young Sky Bison calves, as long as a grown human but only as tall as a child, were the perfect size to slip through the window gaps spread across the stables. While a Nomad would likely find the holes too small to fly through with an extended glider, a speeding calve could slip right out and into the free air without even a running takeoff.

That's why the Dragonmount was there.

He was but a common Firebender in skill and rank, but this one had proven adept enough at handling the military's dragons to be trained to ride them in battle. His job was simple, to kill everything that tried to escape from this side of the temple. Everything, human or otherwise.

It paid to be thorough.

Empowered by the comet, all he needed was a single jet of flame to blast each calve out of the sky. They died instantly, their bodies half ash when the fire stream ceased. Each fist launched a blast large enough to completely encapsulate a young bison. One tried to dodge, but the air was super-heated and the calf's fur burst into flame. It fell from the sky screeching.

That's what did it.

The rubble blocking the Sunrise Launch weighed several tons, and the stone was made from the bones of the mountains, far harder than flesh. It could not be broken. Yet a massive thud reverberated through the rocks, shaking free dust, echoing through the air.

The Dragonmount circled around for a look.

Another thud sounded.

Some of the rocks moved.

Somewhere in the distance, the screech of a jet of flame cut through the air.

A roar, a horrible and primal expression of fury, burst out from the stable windows. The flying serpent beneath the Firebender shuddered.

The Sunrise Launch was consumed in an explosion. Dust and rocks were flung outward, propelled not by fire, but by the transferred force of a fifteen-ton flying bison that was suffering horribly and couldn't take it anymore. Sengemo, the Sky Mother, 200 years old, had answered the cry of her dying offspring. And she wasn't slowing down as she sailed straight over the Launch's balcony and towards the Dragonmount.

The serpent roared a warning. The Firebender tried to blink his way back to coherent thought.

Sengemo, with her recognizable broken left horn, was the progenitor of all the tame Bison given to the Air Nomad children to be their animal guides. Other temples maintained their own herds, but the Eastern Air Temple was where every Airbending child journeyed to bond with one of Sengemo's babies. She watched as they established a loving trust with their new human brothers and sisters, and flew off to a happy and fulfilling life. She led as satisfied an existence as a Sky Bison could.

Now, her latest babies were being lit on fire and horribly killed by invaders.

To say she was mad would be a vast understatement. Language has no words to describe the furious urgency of Sengemo's despair, fueled by eons of instinct and natural conditioning that could be best summarized as, "Protect! Your! Young!" Sengemo had been forced to witness the deaths of many of her children in the last hour, and her intelligent Sky Bison mind could deduce that more such slaughter was going on everywhere around her. Worst of all, she couldn't do anything about it.

But she could sure try.

Faster than the Firebender could even think of attacking, Sengemo had closed the distance. Faster than the dragon could realize that evasive maneuvers were appropriate, Sengemo was upon it. She slammed into the serpent with every bit as much force as she had brought to bear against the stone on the Sunrise Launch. That was both a good and bad thing, as it rocked the Dragonmount back into the sky in an uncontrolled tumble, but it also meant that Sengemo's skull came into contact with the serpent's armor-like skin at dangerous a speed. Dragon skin was as rocklike as organic matter could be. Skull damage was likely.

Sengemo hardly felt it.

The Dragonmount regained control before it could completely plummet. The Firebender was not feeling altogether healthy, as his stomach had taken the brunt of the vertigo, but he hung on tight and trusted his mount to require the winds. When it came down to it, soldiers were very good at recovering their wits in the heat of battle. Spotting the enemy Sky Bison still in the sky, both rider and serpent unleashed Comet-enhanced infernos straight at her. There could be no escape from a blaze this large, and this hot.

Sengemo did not even attempt it. She swung her tail around, and bent a gust of wind which was not at all unfairly enhanced, but owing that it was being generated by a fifteen ton natural Airbender, would still have greatly impressed a catastrophic hurricane. The bulk of blaze was extinguished, denied oxygen by the very speed at which oxygen was passing by. Its momentum was halted, and so the only thing that struck the Sky Bison was a lot of heat and a shower of flame tongues. Parts of her fur ignited, and Sengemo felt the pain of it. She deemed that irrelevant.

Normally, the Dragonmount was an excellent fighting unit, able to react at least as fast as an average fighter. However, both the Firebender and the serpent were feeling a bit overconfident with The Comet overhead, and neither was psychologically prepared to handle a completely implacable foe. Moreover, their combined attack simply shouldn't have failed. So, it was understandable that they were both slow to realize that the fireball had in fact failed quite spectacularly, and the Sky Bison was now counterattacking.

Sengemo flew up to the Dragonmount, bore down on the Firebender, and bit him.

Despite her size and strength, Sengemo had carried her offspring around in her mouth without injuring them. She could do the same for more delicate humans, although firming her grip up a little could result in some bruising. When she really, really wanted, though, she could put a lot of power into a single bite. Blunt teeth came down on the Firebender, and suddenly he was less a man and more a pair of legs with a gory mess on top. The wet sound was more than enough clue to the dragon that the situation was lost. It sunk its claws into Sengemo's fur, whipped its neck around so that it could face the Sky Bison, and belched all the flame it could at the enemy.

Sengemo knew the same pain that had been killing her children, and her friends amongst the Nomads. She also knew what she had to do. The Sky Bison clamped all six of its fingered paws onto the dragon, and finally stopped fighting gravity's intensifying call. The dragon died when it impacted against the ground, miles and miles below the temple. There was one instant of the most excrutiating pain before reality blinked away.

Sengemo, though, lost consciousness while still in the air. Her last animal thought was not of the Temple, nor the Airbenders who lived there. It was of her children, or rather, one particular calf. She knew of no name for him, but like all of her offspring, he was distinct in her mind.

Her last thought settled on the one who had been called Appa, friend to Aang. This was not a coincidence, nor supernatural in any way.

Mothers know.

**END**


	22. From Aang to Katara

_I wrote this piece for the ASN's Valentine exchange last February. My secret recipient was earth_lizard, who is known as a fervent Kataang shipper. I think "The Haunting of Ba Sing Se" turned out better, but this one still makes me laugh a little._

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**From Aang to Katara**

AANG:  
Upon my waking I was entranced, by the beauty in your face.  
I knew at once, should dreams come true, at your side would be my place.  
My dear Katara, I ask of you, to calm my troubled heart,  
And promise me, from this day on, we shall never be apart.

KATARA:  
Oh Aang, of course. I swear by this, the necklace from my mother-  
I'll never leave, we share in love, you're my new younger brother!

AANG:  
My love for you transcends this world, as only a Romance can.  
We would live as but one person, you the wife and I the man.  
Think not of me as cute and small, but desirable and strong.  
I know this as I know my heart, there's no way I can be wrong.

KATARA:  
Oh Aang, you must be mistaken. For love, you are too young as yet.  
Besides, my heart has been given. I have set my mind on Jet!

AANG:  
The world we travel is brutal, not all will live to see peace.  
Before you are hurt beyond cure, from bad boys, your grip release.  
Face the truth and stop holding back, it is your only path to bliss!  
I know you'll realize you love me, if we share just one small kiss!

KATARA:  
Such troubling times confuse me; from love, I should be shying.  
I recall your analogy, a kiss from me and dying!

AANG:  
That was in the past, and also wrong. I died for giving up love.  
What restored me to life was you; I woke to your face above.  
For sake of all I passed through Fire, and threw down the evil Lord.  
Wise am I now and strength I have, to not make you my reward.

KATARA:  
A prize you have earned, so I choose, your emergence at last done.  
Together we will face this new age of love... forever one.

**END**


	23. The Heron

_Here's another entry in ASN's drabble contest. I didn't place this time, but I knew going in I was going to be pushing the theme to the breaking point. (Side note- the bird in this story is actually a recurring bit in my personal Avatar mythology, and may appear again in some of my stories.)_

_Prompt- The First Benders_:_ "I want you to create a story about the first benders. What does that mean? Doesn't matter. It could be about Spiritbending or the Sky Bisons. Interpret this theme how you want, and if you are unsure, just ask."_

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**The Heron**

Long ago, the three nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when a heron flew down from the heavens. It spiraled down from beyond sight, a small black speck in a sky so brightly blue that eyes watered. It was a pure bird, elegant in movement, form, and physical construction. It could be called unique, had any been around to discern the bird clearly, for none living had seen a heron without whiskers on its beak or round ears on its head or spines on its back. It was simply a white-feathered heron, wings spread, feet back, and neck curved. It glided through the thin air, skimming by clouds, lazily approaching the colorful spread of the planet below.

The first land the heron explored was the Earth Kingdom. The bird tilted its wings just slightly, and below it swirled the rocky grounds and lush forests. War had long since been forgotten, so the stone cities were open and the people moved about freely. Earthbenders practiced their art. Some sparred with each other. Others summoned their element for construction. Many moved just for the sensation, the feel and the call and the joy of being one with the bones of the planet.

The heron did not take notice of the Earthbenders.

The bird flew over the other people, flapping its wings to propel itself just over their heads. It called, asking for attention, and upon receiving it, solemnly demonstrated its freedom from the Earth they walked on. None of the people were moved. They were in love with their country's element, and although they found the heron beautiful, they did not think much of flight. So the heron wheeled off to another realm.

The heron soared over the oceans, the seas sailed by the Water Tribes. The endless blue lacked permanent features, but it was no less interesting for its transitional nature. In some places, the waters were still and sparkled with reflected sunlight, while in others, massive waves reached for the heavens and then came down in mighty crashes that swirled the water around and below them. Water Tribe ships bobbed and cut through the blue, propelled by serene Waterbenders lost in the feel of the push and pull.

The heron did not take notice of the Waterbenders.

The bird circled the boats, randomly diving towards the waters and plucking fish from the waves. The Water Tribe sailors also fished for food, casting lines and spears, hauling nets and cages, working hard under the sun, while the bird was much more relaxed in its hunting. The heron let gravity and momentum be its strength, with a slight adjustment of its wings carrying it back into the sky with prize in beak. The sailors were not impressed, though, since they valued the strength their work gave them, and had too much love for the constant spray of the ocean on their faces. So the heron turned to the islands.

The heron found itself over the Fire Nation. It was a contrasting patchwork, with spots here and there still natural and beautiful. Other spots were covered in sprawling cities, made from metal and glass and materials not found in nature. The buildings rose high into the sky, forcing the heron to fly higher, or to dodge around humanity's constructions. Most of the clearer skies in the cities were above the sparring grounds, where Firebenders practiced, fought honor duels, and trained to master themselves both in spirit and body. Even from the skies, flashes of light could also be glimpsed in the windows, where professional benders focused heat and flame into manufacturing and scientific experimentation, to advance the world through technology and engineering.

The heron did not take notice of the Firebenders.

Instead, it flew out to the farms and villages, where benders were rare, and the children of Agni endured the heat of the sun without any special abilities. They plowed the dirt, fished the rivers, and worked stone and inks and tiles into works of art. The heron hopped onto their houses and fences, opening its wings below the sun and showing off the freedom that flight provided, the freedom to go anywhere and live regardless of station or wealth. It would then take to the skies and cry out happily, inviting any to follow it to lands of bliss. Yet the commoners of the Fire Nation did not spare any attention for the bird, so focused were they on completing their work before sundown. They believed they had no time for flights of fancy. Some even fired their guns at the bird, some for sport and others for food.

So the heron left all the known lands. It flew over land and sea, high above the clouds. Eventually, it found itself on an island somewhere in a remote ocean. The people there didn't worry about which nation to pledge loyalty to. No one bothered them, and they in turn focused on living productive and happy lives. However, it was not the most lush of islands, having little in the way of pleasant crops. One young man, still retaining a token childish spirit, had taken it upon himself to purchase fruit seeds from foreign parts, and was traveling the island to plant them everywhere they might thrive. He sleep on the ground, beneath the stars, and beside the beaches.

The heron took notice of him.

It landed a short distance away from the man, and watched as he dropped some seeds into the dug ground. The man didn't notice the bird until he had finished. Smiling in delight, the man waved at the bird. The heron, in turn, spread its wings, and slowly flapped them as if it were flying. The man approached the bird, seeing it unafraid.

The heron called, and slowly flapped its wings again.

The man was close now, and surprised that the bird stayed on the ground. It once again waved its wings. The man, curious and amused, flapped his arms back in mock greeting. The bird called once again, and leapt into the air. It circled low above the man, flapping its wings regularly.

The man became thoughtful, and rose and lowered its arms in time with the bird.

A breeze spun out from the man's arms. The heron called out once more, and flew away satisfied.

The man looked at his hands and wondered. Where did the breeze come from? Could be brought back? Could other movements do more?

As the man wondered, and the heron returned to the heavens, the Airbenders made their long awaited return to the world. A new era had begun.

**END**


	24. Lazy Late Night

**Lazy Late Night**

Zuko reflected that coming down from an adrenaline high wasn't much fun.

Wrecking Chan's house and burning the ruins down was a hoot. Zuko admitted that. Even considering current circumstances, such a memory made the whole night worth it. Of course, after fun like that, anything was going to pale in comparison. When the follow-up consisted of ambling back to Li and Lo's cramped house and sitting around The Terrible Trio (...no, Zuko didn't like that. Azula's Angels? Nah, how could Azula be one of Azula's Angels? The ATM Machine? Not bad, but not great. Zuko resolved to think about it more later.) as the night faded to day, the contrast was almost too much to bear.

It wasn't that Zuko didn't like hanging out with his sister's friends. Sure, hanging out with some of his own theoretical friends would have been more respectable, but there was no denying the view was good, this way. And, okay, spending time with Azula was always a horrible experience, but Mai kind of balanced that out. Kind of the way Ty Lee balanced being a walking annoyance by equally annoying Azula.

Actually Ty Lee was the crux of Zuko's current problem. He wanted to go do something appropriate to having just had a personal revelation and subsequently committing arson, like taking a long walk on the beach brooding as he watched the sun rise. Or getting some Fire Flakes from one of the all-night stands. Or stealing a boat and going to look for the Avatar for a while, just for kicks. But here he was, stuck in Li and Lo's nasty-smelling sitting room, because of Ty Lee.

She claimed she thought she believed she knew him, earlier that night, so Zuko wasn't surprised when she sat down near him when they all arrived back at the beach house. She was probably waiting for an opportunity to act all buddy-buddy with him or hug him or whatever it was she did to express friendship. And as the adrenaline wore off and they all sat around talking, some of the group had gotten sleepy. Like, all the girls. (He was surprised at Azula, but not Mai; his girlfriend was so chronically bored with the world that it was a wonder she didn't nod off whenever she was still.) Including Ty Lee. Who, unlike her two pillow-loving friends, had no problem laying her vacant little head on his ankles and going out like a candle in the wind.

He couldn't get up or move without waking her, and he was such a nice guy now that he couldn't bring himself to actually do that. (Plus, he remembered having a little crush on her years ago, and he felt obligated to Honor that memory by not adding physical abuse to the verbal lashing he gave her earlier that night. And she could probably beat him up.) Yet his feet were getting that tingly, pins'n'needles feeling. And he really wanted to go outside and brood a little like a real warrior.

Zuko reflected that his life was an endless parade of suffering, and sighed like Mai at a formal banquet.

A wrinkled hand slapped him in the back of the head, startling him and nearly making him kick Ty Lee into the air like a ball. Zuko turned around to see Li and Lo in the doorway behind him. Why were they still up?

The twins gave him identical derisive glares. "We know what you were thinking," Li or Lo (he couldn't tell them apart) said. "And we're sick of all your mental whining," Lo or Li (he still couldn't tell them apart) added. They moved off into the darkened kitchen area, and were lost to view.

Zuko reflected that coming down from an adrenaline high wasn't much fun.

**END**


	25. Two Shades of Green

_Avatar Spirit had a Shamrock Exchange for the last St Patrick's day, with a "Green" theme. My recipient was The Quaint Quill, who among other ships likes the idea of Teo/Jin. Always one to go looking for trouble, I decided to take a crack at that one._

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**Two Shades of Green**

The color of the Earth Kingdom is green. It is a strong color, associated with the ground they draw their strength from, and reminiscent of the life that springs from it. Its people embrace the color, and happily incorporate it into their dress. The green of the Earth Kingdom is a statement of its identity.

Yet, not everyone wears the same shade.

Teo lives atop the Earth Kingdom's tallest peaks, surrounded by the sky, where the air is too thin to hold any heat, and all it takes is a single misstep to make a lethal enemy of the ground. Teo often leaves the Earth behind, to see how high he can soar.

Jin lives in the Earth Kingdom's widest city, surrounded by walls of stone, where loyal citizens can bask in the warmth of absolute safety, but one can find it all too easy to appear disloyal to the wrong people. Jin is content where she is, for she cannot imagine that this supposed shelter could ever be breached.

Teo's life is lit by the stars in the night sky, stars that shine brighter over his home than anywhere else in the world. The stars are far off, but clearly defined, more constant than even the sun itself. Teo does not know what the stars are made of, but he wonders.

Jin's life is lit by homemade lanterns, little flames that struggle against the pervasive darkness. The lanterns hang amongst the city folk, easily reachable, but only because they are so fleeting. A mere breeze can extinguish them, or their fuel could run dry, and it falls to the people to restore their light. Jin knows what the flames are made of, but pretends it is beyond her comprehension.

Teo finds freedom in technology, mechanical creations that allow him to move and live and fly. He thinks it an improvement when ancient temples are filled with pipes, decorative walls punctured to allow access points, art covered with functionality. He reasons that survival and convenience are worth giving up culture and history.

Jin finds freedom in people, fellow humans who can enrich her life by sharing knowledge of their own. Though she may never know of traveling across her nation, of experiencing the fun and joy of exotic amusements, of growing stronger for life's complexities, she can learn of them from those who have. She believes that without the simple happiness of a life well lived, there is little point in survival at all.

Though for all their differences, Teo and Jin both wear green. They both have been hurt by people they thought they could trust. Both want nothing more than to share the source of their joys with all their friends, and they would take unending pleasure in making friends with the whole world. Both have experienced the sudden appearance of war in their peaceful lives, and both received unexpected delivery from the new Heroes of a New Age. Both have, in their own unique ways, helped those Heroes reach their greatest victories.

The color of Jin and Teo, together, is green.

**END**


	26. Seeing Beauty

_This is yet another entry in Avatar Spirit's drabble contest. This time there were no rankings, so I guess you could say I tied for second. On an unrelated note, is apparently having trouble with its Reviews system, so I can't reply to any at this point in time. All reviews are appreciated, though, and will get responses when things are running smoothly again.  
_

**Prompt- Ugliness and Beauty  
Criteria:  
Humor!  
Make me laugh! Make me giggle! Make me go "what the he... oh! AAHAHAHA!" Ugliness and beauty is a very serious subject, and injecting humor into it will cheapen the story unless done skillfully and correctly. Do it skillfully and correctly.  
Creativity!  
I love it when people come up with stuff I could never, ever think of in a million years. Ugliness and Beauty is a broad and general subject. Take it and run with it! Don't stray too far, though. Keep it as the main theme (or one of the main themes) for your story please.  
The twist!  
Ambiguity and confusion resolution are two of my favorite things that happen in stories. Make me go "huh. Didn't see that one coming." at the end of the story!**

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**Seeing Beauty**

Toph decided it was time to ask a difficult question. Her friends hadn't been humiliated enough today. "Is Suki pretty?"

Suki choked on her tea. Sokka twisted his face in a way Toph had learned to partner with confusion. Katara, Aang, and Zuko whipped their heads around to face the blind girl. Mai gave a little snort of amusement, and Iroh continued to calmly sip his tea.

Of course, these people were all warriors and heroes, and couldn't be shocked immobile for long. "Of course Suki is pretty! Suki is the prettiest girl in the world!" Sokka shouted. His words were just the catalyst Toph had hoped for.

"Gee, thanks, big brother."

"What about Yue?"

"Or your mother?"

Toph put some fake hurt into her own objection. "You didn't even have to think about it? I'm hurt, lover boy." Sokka started to stammer qualifications, but Toph cut him off. "Besides, you being in love and all is influencing you. You're blinded by love."

No one laughed at that, but at least Mai gave another snicker-snort. Jerks.

"I think that's really sweat," Aang smiled. "That's why Katara looks like the prettiest girl in the world to me." Katara blushed fiercely at that, and Aang's face reddened in response.

Suki patted Sokka on the shoulder. "I like the sound of that."

Toph had to put a stop to this before she the gagging reflex took over. "Yeah, great, thanks for heating the room up, my tea was getting cold. But seriously, I want to know. Katara says I'm pretty enough when I bathe, but I want to know about the other girls. Aang, give it me straight. Is Suki pretty?"

His irregular heartbeat was a reward of its own. "Yeah, sure." Then he calmed and grinned. He must have had an idea. "She wears the makeup _a lot_ better than I do."

Everyone had a good laugh at that, except Zuko and Mai. The jerks would laugh at that but not another blind joke? "Fine. Sokka, is Katara pretty?"

"I guess."

Katara crossed her arms in that way Toph knew made everyone think her menacing. "You guess?"

Sokka slumped. "It's just... you remind me so much of mom. I'm... what did Toph call it? Influenced!"

Katara actually smiled. Huh. Nice save on his part. Making everyone uncomfortable again would require Toph's direct intervention. "Okay, lover boy, I guess you're excused. Zuko! Tell me if Katara is pretty!"

Ooh, that was good. The Fire Lord was sitting there with his jaw hanging, making little gasping noises. Mai's smirk was so big, Toph could feel it without even trying.

Katara's own smile was gone. "What's the trouble, Zuko? It's a simple question. Am I pretty or not?"

Zuko swallowed and began. "Although you're not what I was taught to consider beautiful, I can... see... where other people would... find you... attractive."

"So you _do_ think I'm pretty."

"...yyyyyyyyyyyyes."

Mai actually giggled. Sokka, Suki, and even Aang were suppressing full blown laughter. Toph could feel Katara's heart rate pick up a little, so she must have been blushing slightly. "Thank you, Zuko. That wasn't too hard, was it?" The Fire Lord didn't answer. He was too busy breathing.

Toph drained the last of her tea and plunked the cup down. "That's what I wanted to know. Thanks, everyone. With your help, I've reached a decision."

Sokka, of course, was the first to take the bait. "What's that?"

Toph grinned. "I've decided that Mai is the prettiest girl in the room. I've been listening and feeling the whole time you've all been going on about makeup and moms and Zuko's little hang-ups, and she's the only one who didn't show an ugly mood the whole time. Good job, Knives."

Toph felt that deep smirk come back to the quiet girl's face. "Thanks, Toph. I try. You're kind of cute yourself, in your own strange way."

Iroh laughed in that deep way of his, and reached over to pour Toph more tea. "Very wise, my dears. Toph, you may not have sight, but you have a solid concept of beauty that you live your life in accordance with. And it's not a superficial beauty, either, but one relating to the soul." He nodded and moved to refill his own cup as well. "For the record, I think Mai is very beautiful, too."

That feeling! Mai's heart was beating a little faster. Was she actually blushing? Over what Iroh said? "Thank you, Uncle," she returned smoothly. "And congratulations on being the first member of the royal family to say so to me."

Everyone fell silent at that.

Sokka spoke first. "Real smooth, Zuko. You moron."

Everyone, even Toph and Mai, laughed.

**END**


	27. Kisses

**KISSES**

Mai was grace and music. Kissing her made him understand all the powers of womankind. The way she moved, talked, and looked at him made him want to stand taller, speak deeper, and shave. It made him want to be a man. Her kisses were light, but heavy in meaning. Just one hit harder than any fighter could.

Toph was surprising. It wasn't until after he had taken her measure in a kiss that he saw her as a woman at all. She was the future, she was energy. She was delight, and a laughter that refused to be contained. He simultaneously wanted to wrap around her protectively, and trail behind her watching her hair bob. Her kiss was awkward, but heartfelt. She had no sense of finesse or technique, but it was the most honest kiss he had ever received.

Katara tasted like fish.

**END**

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**_Happy Zutara Week! (Or am I missing the point?)_


	28. Meeting Cute

_There's a Sujin shipper out there who was depressed that her ship didn't have any good fanfic. I'm like a superhero to crackshippers._

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**Meeting Cute**

"Oh, wow, great makeup. Are you a clown?"

That was not the preferred way to greet a Kyoshi Warrior. "Excuse me?" Suki challenged, summoning a glare so fierce it wouldn't have looked bad on Kyoshi herself.

The girl was a simple peasant, wearing a plain worn frock. She looked fairly clean for a Lower Ring resident, but needed some lessons in the proper use of undergarments. "I met a juggler and knife thrower in the neighborhood, and when I saw your makeup I thought..." She trailed off as she picked up on Suki's growing resentment. "I'm sorry."

Suki felt a part of herself melt at the girl's abashed wilting. "It's all right. It's an uncommon look. I'm a warrior. My order patterns our uniforms and makeup after Avatar Kyoshi." At the girl's blank stare, she added, "She was the Earth Kingdom's last Avatar. Next came the Fire Nation, and now we have an Air Nomad."

"Oh! That's neat." She broke out into a smile that had no business in a sullen, depressing place like the Lower Ring. "What's a warrior doing down here?"

"Showing the colors, keeping the peace. The Earth King has decided that things in the city need cleaning up, and he's asked my Kyoshi Warriors to help out before we go home." Suki smiled. "You may have noticed that we're pretty noticeable. We make a good crime deterrent."

"And you're just plain pretty. That's a plus," the girl added. "I'm Jin. I could show you around the Lower Ring a bit, point out some of the trouble spots, and good places to get food."

Suki had received several such offers that day already, but for some reason, this one struck in a way the others hadn't. "Okay, that would be good." She bowed. "Thank you for your assistance."

Jin grinned like a well-fed Owlcat. "The pleasure is all mine."

Jin taught Suki everything she knew about her home in the Lower Ring, and showed off the full range of the good and bad. Some time later, Suki returned the favor on Kyoshi Island...

**END**


	29. Warriors and Boomerangs

**Warriors and Boomerangs**

"You must be joking."

Normally, that would be a good guess. This time, however, Sokka was completely serious. "Put the paint on, Mai."

"No."

"You have to. It's a necessary part of warrior training." He had already done his own face.

"Why?"

"It connects you with your environment. With the heritage of your people..."

"My people are Fire Nation, and my family specifically comes from a long line of scribes turned politicians. The only make-up my ancestors wore was for seduction purposes."

That thought nearly made Sokka gag. "Mai, we're not doing this until you put the paint on."

"No."

"Then you won't learn how to throw the boomerang."

"I'll get someone else to teach me." Spirits, Mai could be stubborn.

"Mai, the boomerang is a Water Tribe weapon. None of us will teach you if you don't paint your face. Suki is the only outsider who we've ever taught, and she'll make you wear the _colorful_ face paint. It's your choice."

Mai's eyes narrowed at the mention of the traditional Kyoshi Warrior appearance. "Give me the paint."

"I can put it on for you-"

"Don't touch me. Just give me the paint."

To Mai's credit, she did a good job putting it on, using only the flat of one of her polished blades for a mirror. When she was finished, she looked even more fierce and foreboding than usual. Sokka approved. "Now you'll have to tie your hair back so that you don't look so Fire Nation..."

Mai's glare had become even sharper with the addition of the war paint. "My hair stays the way it is. Start teaching, or I'm done."

Sokka sighed. "Okay." He reached to his belt, and removed one of the two boomerangs he was carrying holstered. "I made this one for you." The whole boomerang was stained dark red, except for the cutting edge, which was a glossy black, like polished obsidian. "Don't ask how I got it red. You won't like the answer."

Mai reverently took the boomerang, gazing at it. Was that awe in her eyes? "Thank you."

Sokka took out his own boomerang. "No problem. Now, the trick is planning out the angle of travel..."

**END**


	30. Lockup

**Lockup**

It was a room fit for a princess.

The first impression was of its size. Compared to the pathetically cramped holes several levels down, the room could be called a palace in its own right. The grand bed in the back of the room came nowhere near the polished, dark metal walls on either side of it, and the silk canopy trailing from the ceiling down past the mattress obscured any sight of them. There was enough room between the door and the foot of the bed to serve as a training ground, even for one of the Princess' Firebending power. The furniture pieces were works of art in and of themselves, carved out of strong wood, hammered and shaped from the most pure gold, and decorated with jewels whose worth could be measured in the lives it took to retrieve them from their underground homes.

The best part, though, was the view.

The window practically took up a whole wall by itself, allowing a glorious breeze whenever the wind visited, but the panorama it afforded was the main draw. The prison grounds themselves were invisible, so high was the tower containing the room, but the Boiling Lake (the largest of its kind in the Fire Nation) and the naturally shaped volcanic rock beyond it were enticingly visible, and framed by the heavy burgundy curtains that themselves were practically a symbol of the Royal Family.

The heat could be annoying, but Azula was nothing if not used to heat.

A gentle knock came from the door. The Princess called in return, her voice mellow, a false hint of emotion flavoring the words. "You may enter."

The door slid open. Once it had creaked with rust, but the Princess had been annoyed by that. One word was all that had been necessary.

The Warden entered and bowed. "My Princess. The reply came back." His over-sized lips almost quivered. "Our petition was denied again."

Azula would later unleash an inferno of rage at this development, but for now she needed to remain in control. "I don't blame you, Warden. You have been most agreeable to me during my stay here."

The Warden bowed again, a childish smile blossoming on his hideous face. "It has been my pleasure to serve, my Princess."

"I know. Why don't you join me for dinner later? We can discuss our next move. Perhaps some additional pressure on your niece will finally lead to my release." Azula stood up and slowly stepped over to her guest. "And I'll take you with me. Together, the world will become one great opportunity for us."

The Warden was practically trembling in his armored uniform. Azula placed a hand against the right side of his face. She leaned her face towards the left, and whispered. "Make sure the food is extra special tonight."

She snapped away and walked back towards the window. "Dismissed."

The Warden practically skipped out of the room, after one last bow. So disgusting, really. His looks were horrible enough, but he didn't improve his bearing any with such unrefined mannerisms. Azula would be doing Mai's family a favor by killing him.

After she got out of here, of course.

**END**


	31. Bedtime Stories

_This piece was done specifically as a compliment to an art piece on deviantArt called "Bedtime Stories", by Terrafan4242, depicting Iroh holding a young Zuko (who is wearing turtleduck jammies)._

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**Bedtimes Stories (Prose Adaptation)**

"And then!"

Normally, that phrase didn't function as a standalone sentence in conversation. However, when General Iroh, the famed Dragon of the West, told a story, it was a frequent and vital bridge between the most exciting parts. It was delivered with a fierce enthusiasm, usually coupled with a widening of the eyes and a sudden forward leaning. Iroh often drew out the "then", but not always; it depended on the context.

Young Prince Zuko inhaled sharply with anticipation.

Iroh smiled. "And then... Avatar Roku summoned a wall of flame, as wide as the Walls of Ba sing Se and as tall as this very palace!"

Young Prince Zuko stared in amazement, even though he had no idea how wide they made walls in Ba Sing Se.

His Uncle grinned and leaned forward again, his face nearly touching Zuko's. Now, Iroh's voice was hushed, to properly convey the desired sense of awe and victory. "Avatar Roku pushed the wall forward, and the Black Spirit was forced to flee. But Avatar Roku did not stop! He chased the Black Spirit with the wall, until the villain had to jump into the sea to escape. Even then, the sea had been so heated by the Avatar's flames, that it boiled and scalded the Black Spirit. The coward whined in his agony, and finally fled back into the Spirit World."

Iroh leaned back and grinned happily. "Ta Min was saved, and the next day she and Avatar Roku were married."

It took Zuko a few seconds to process all that. More pleased at his Uncle's content tone than the story's ending, the Young Prince smiled wide and clapped.

Iroh chuckled with pleasure.

Then a voice cut into room. "You were supposed to tell him a bedtime story."

Iroh turned around to address Zuko's mother. "That was a bedtime story. Boys need exciting stories to make them want to grow up big and strong."

Ursa's tiny smile ruined her attempt to appear stern with her brother-in-law. "Boys need sleep for that, too, and exciting stories keep them up at night. Here, I'll take him and give him a back rub. That should put him down."

Iroh nodded and handed Zuko back to his mother. "Go ahead, Zuko. Avatar Roku loved back rubs, too." Zuko acknowledged that information with a grave nod, and went quietly to his mother.

Ten minutes later, he was asleep.

That night, both Zuko and Iroh dreamed of heroes, spirits, and Avatars.

**END**


	32. Captive Heart

_I know it's an odd intro to this drabble, but I'm hosting a Maikka (Mai/Sokka) week at the end of September. If you're interested, check out my deviant art account at loopy777 dot deviantArt dot com. And now, on with the show..._

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**Captive Heart**

She didn't even try to pretend she wasn't Fire Nation, or beg for a mercy she didn't deserve. That's what saved her life; he wouldn't have been able to control his fury if one of Their arrogant breeding machines presumed a right to exist when his own-

They bound her and dragged her back to the hideout. She refused to walk, but that wasn't a problem. Pipsqueak just threw her over his shoulder and carried her. He claimed she was as lighter than a basket leechee nuts. They stuck her in a little treehouse that separated a bit from the rest of the settlement. It didn't have any ropes or ladders leading to it, and the only way to even reach it was to swing from several trees over.

The only way to leave was to have a friend several trees over willing to swing a rope over to you.

Jet brought her food every day. He kept hoping to see some kind of despair or outrage take hold, but the days went by and she maintained a demeanor that, if anything, could be described as bored by the whole situation. So, he started telling her of some of the Freedom Fighters' activities.

"We ambushed a supply convoy today. Got away with some great stuff. Weapons and food, mostly. We killed all the soldiers."

"A town your people were occupying is now underwater. Got the whole occupation force, including the settlers. They didn't have any warning at all."

"We found one of you dirty Fire Nations wandering the woods today. Thought we'd bring you a friend. But she wasn't as smart as you, and gave me lip when we tried to take her captive. I killed her."

She couldn't have known which tales were exaggerations and which were the truth, but she never rose to the bait. The one time Jet got a reaction at all, he had just finished a long story detailing a completely fictional plan to rig some kind of scroll-like grenade using captured blasting jelly, which would then be sent to the newly renamed city of New Ozai in an ingenious strike at the civilian population through mass mail bombing. She rolled her eyes at that and flipped him off.

So he began threatening her. He started with death. She just said, "Please. I'm bored out of my mind here." So then he tried pain. That got nothing. He began coming up with new, creative tortures (at this point he was really starting to neglect his role as leader and mastermind of the Freedom Fighters) that would hopefully unnerve her, at least a little. She just corrected his grammar. Finally, he threw off his last pretensions of humanity and made threats against her femininity.

She looked him in the eye, and said, "I dare you, you delinquent."

At that point he had to admit he was in love.

**END**


	33. The Star

_I wrote this piece for the Avatar Spirit's Christmas exchange last December. My secret recipient was Tophrules9876, who listed Tokka as one of her favorite relationships. Working a Christmas-y theme into an Avatar fanfic stymied me for a bit._

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**The Star**

One night, a star fell from the sky.

It tumbled through the air as though dead, covered in flames and glowing with heat, until it impacted against the Earth with enough force to shake the ground itself. Eventually, the star cooled, and the fire went out. All that was left in the crater was a large lump of metal, rough and unsightly, not at all what one would have expected from the heart of a star. It would have been left there, forgotten, but one boy realized its true worth.

The star's heart was brought back to the boy's master, where it was broken up, shattered into smaller rocks that the boy could hold in the palms of his hands. The rocks into the forge, and the boy guided them back through a process of fire and impact. This time the destination was not death, but life. The rocks came together into a vibrant liquid form, running like water into a mold, where something even greater was born.

That portion of the star's dead heart was revived as a Sword, unique in all the lands, stronger and darker than had ever been seen before. The boy trained with the Sword, and named it, and carried it into battle so that he could protect the ones he loved. He used the Sword to drive back the hateful, the bloodthirsty, and the unjust. The Sword shattered their weapons, and stripped them of their armor. It was a Sword of life, as alive as the star it had once been.

When the final battle came, the star died again. To protect his greatest and truest friend, the boy gave up the Sword, flinging it so that it flew like the star it had once been, stopping one last murderer from spreading more loss and suffering. The Sword did its duty and then fell, as it had once before, passing through flames and heat, coming to its final rest on the ground. No longer a Sword, it would lay there forever, lost, but not forgotten by the boy who forged and honored it.

It was also not forgotten by the girl whose life had been saved by its final flight.

The girl was the boy's closest friend. When forging the Sword, he had saved one small chunk of the dead star's heart, and presented it to her as a gift, so that she would never forget him. In her hands, the the dead star lived again, sustained by her Earthbending powers, flowing and twisting as if liquid, and then hardening again, according to her will.

When the boy gave up his Sword to save her life, she understood the sacrifice it was, and the emptiness he would forevermore carry in his own living heart.

She hesitated for some time, fearing beyond conscious thought that if she gave up the gift of the living heart, her own heart might someday forget him. Yet she eventually realized that so long as her heart lived, it would bear his marks. So she gave life to the star's heart one last time, and then passed it to him.

The heart came to life once more in his hands.

Although there was not enough of the dead star left to make another Sword, its size had been more than adequate for the girl's designs. She had flattened it, straightened it, and bent it very precisely, into a shape she had felt before. Although the boy was a Swordsman by choice, his people favored various weapons, and he had trained in their use, and carried them with him so that he would always be able to do his duty and protect the ones he loved.

The girl turned her rock into a Boomerang.

She gave it to the boy, and he instantly understood her sacrifice. He honored it by keeping the gift always close to his heart, and he had always kept his memories of her the same way.

The star lived and flew again, for as long as the boy and the girl lived.

**END**


	34. Raiders of the Last Temple of Lemurs

_This is yet another Avatar Spirit drabble contest entry. I didn't win, and there were no other rankings. Paraphrased, the theme this time was "Missing Moments"- the drabble had to be based on some off-screen event that could have occurred during the series proper, and hopefully the entry would shed new light on things or people, amuse in a comedic manner, and keep things plausible._

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**Raiders of the Last Temple of Lemurs**

"I guess none of the others are coming along."

Haru sighed at that. "So Katara won't be exploring the secret rooms with us."

Teo gave the Earthbender a weary look. "If you want to be that specific about it, yes." He pushed his chair further down the dusty passage. "Of course, it may not be an issue, if we don't find any secret rooms. We kind of had a whole team of people to help find them when we first settled in my home Temple. The Northern one."

"Yeah, but you didn't have any Earthbenders," Haru remarked sullenly. "I bet I could find some secret rooms, no problem. My dad taught me lots of neat Earthbending tricks, during our campaign to free my region from the Fire Nation." The memory cheered him up. "Those were some glorious days, all the campaigns we waged, all the battles we fought. One lasted for 3 days, almost non-stop. It was just a handful of us, crowded in a ditch, holding off waves of Firebenders. All of us became heroes, that time. The people we freed composed songs about us." His smiled drooped back into a frown. "Too bad my dad's back in prison."

Teo didn't want to deal with a depressed Haru again. "I bet Katara would be really impressed by that story," he lied. "You should tell her when we finish up here."

Haru's frown disappeared, and his back straightened noticeably. "That's a good idea, Teo. No wonder everyone says you're a smart guy."

The Duke was less than impressed. "I thought we were gonna find some secret rooms. You guys are boring."

Haru shot the kid a dirty look, and swung a fist in the direction of a nearby wall. The stone barrier crumbled, revealing another, darker passageway. "There's your secret room, brat."

The Duke gave a little cheer (because that's what dumb adults expected a happy kid to do), and ran down the secret path.

Haru followed, and Teo turned his chair to do likewise. "My dad's the really smart one, you know."

"Yeah, didn't he build most of those tanks and things we used in the invasion?"

"Yup. Well, he didn't _build_ them all; he designed them and oversaw the construction, but engineers and mechanics did the actual building."

Haru waved a hand. "Details. Your dad did the hard part. You should be proud of him. Especially for those submarine things!"

"I am proud," Teo said with a smile. "Although he didn't design the submarines. Sokka did that."

Haru stopped cold. "Sokka?"

"Yeah."

"Katara's older brother?"

"Yeah."

"The stupid guy with the boomerang?"

"Stupid?" Teo's eyebrows shot up. "He's one of the smartest people I ever met. He and my dad are mechanical geniuses, and he seemed pretty on the ball when he took command during the invasion. Solid grasp of tactics, and his familiarity with our tanks let him make better use of them than his dad did. The guy's going places in this world, trust me."

Haru's own eyebrows did a little dance upon hearing that news. "Huh. I guess you're right. He just... well, I guess I didn't see him at his best. Katara always struck me as the one running that show."

Unseen by his companions, as he was the one leading them onward, The Duke rolled his eyes. "Again with Katara," he mumbled.

The trio continued onward in silence, having run out of things to say to each other. To be fair, they had only known each other for a short time, and had been abandoned by their mutual acquaintances for what were presumably more important matters. Eventually, the three boys reached the end of the secret passage. It lead into a much larger path, a massive ramp running perpendicular to the secret hallway, that continued on in both directions as far as could be seen. This deep into the temple, there were no windows, and the ventilation shafts allowed sunlight only a token presence.

"Which way?" Haru wondered.

"Down," Teo decided with a smirk. He gave his wheelchair a strong push that also spun him to face in the proper direction, and let gravity carry him on the path to exploration. His happy cry echoed as he disappeared into shadow.

Haru and The Duke glanced at each other. "I guess we should follow him," the Earthbender ventured.

"No one gets left behind," The Duke answered, and took off in a run down the ramp.

Haru, not wanting to be upstaged by a toddler when he told Katara all about this later, called up a surf-slab with an outward swing of his arms, and pushed off down the ramp. As she slid past The Duke, Haru noticed faded paint on the walls, but random scorch marks obscured whatever visual the mural was supposed to convey. Then the darkness settled over him. The sound of The Duke's footsteps faded into the distance behind Haru, but he still couldn't hear the Teo's rollerchair. The Earthbender pumped his arms faster, increasing his speed. He hoped he didn't hit anything.

When the sound of a crash came, it took Haru a second to realize it wasn't happening to him. He immediately slowed down, and so merely bumped into the wall at the bottom of the ramp without pain. "Teo?"

"I'm okay. I just hit my head. But not badly."

"Where are you?"

"There's a door to your left."

"How can you see?"

"Shut your eyes so that they adjust. There's still a little light coming down here."

Haru did as told, counting to thirty, and then opened his eyes again. Sure enough, there was an airshaft above, but it was so long only a trace of sunlight managed to cover the distance. He found the door and began moving cautiously towards it. The floor was covered in soft debris of some kind. "I'm coming. Bet you wished you noticed this before you crashed."

"I did, but the breaks on my chair failed. That's what I get for not checking them out after the invasion."

"Well, we were distracted." Haru reached the doorway, and stepped through.

Teo was in a heap at the base of a massive statue, his chair toppled beside him. Peering past his friend, Haru saw that the chamber they were in was pretty big, its ceiling reaching up beyond the range of his vision in the scarce lighting. Other statues were placed in what seemed like a random order through out the room, and all along the walls. Haru approached Teo, staring at closest stone figure. It was covered in something. Dust? "What's this stuff all over the statues? Ugh, and the floor?"

Teo made a face. "I think it's... guano."

"..._oh_. I'm almost afraid to ask, but, from what?"

At that moment, The Duke chose to announce his arrival with a shout that echoed into the concealing shadows. "There you guys are! Wow! You found an _awesome_ room!"

There was a delay of but a moment, and then the answering chatters fluttered down to the three boys. Closing following came a swarm of little fuzzy creatures on leathery wings. Moving so rapidly, in so little light, none of the three boys could immediately figure out what they were. Wolfbats? Giant bugs? Ratdragons? Haru gave a high-pitched cry of terror and swatted inefficiently with his hands. The Duke swung his staff around like a club, actually knocking some of the creatures from the air, but there was so little strength in the blows that they weren't even stunned, and quickly took off again. Teo just put his goggles down over his eyes and calmly covered his head with his hands.

Eventually, the creatures seemed to come to the conclusion that the trio of boys was no threat, and they sailed through the doorway and up the ramp. It took Haru a moment to realize that there was nothing left to panic over, but a quick conk from The Duke's staff brought him back to his senses. "What were those _things_?"

The Duke straightened his helmet. "They looked like that Monkeybat. You know, Aang's. Momo."

"Flying Lemurs!" Teo grinned. "I thought they were mostly extinct! Aang will be _thrilled_ to hear about this!"

Haru considered that. "Can I tell everyone? I want Katara to hear it from me, if that's all right."

The Duke and Teo sighed.

Later at dinner, Haru tried to tell Katara all about his day, but she interrupted him only two words in with some griping about someone named Zuko, which somehow transitioned into a full blown rant about the group's other Earthbender, Toph. He gave up and ate in silence. It wouldn't be until after the war that Teo would find an appropriate time to tell the Avatar about the last living remnants of his Nomadic culture.

**END**


	35. Eruption

_Did you know this week is Toko week? Check out WithinOurTemptation's deviantArt page for the list of themes. I won't be doing the full week like with Irko, but expect a few more entries with Toph and Zuko fun._

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**Toko Week - Eruption**

The sky was gone.

Rolling black smoke covered it for miles, blotting out the light of the heavens, be it stars or moon or sun. There was little wind, and what little that visited brought only ash and the smell of sulfur. Had the heat not already burned all the island's plant life, they would have been killed by the artificial darkness. Had the island ever sheltered humans, they would have choked to death.

Of course, the air quality was the least of the island's problems. Lava was pouring down its sides, cooling slowly as it came, making its flow erratic and random. At the tip of the volcano, the lava was bright and glowing, but by the time it reached the beaches, it was a seeping gray sludge with an inner light that escaped through various cracks and dribbles. The air above the lava danced with heat distortion, and the ground beneath it melted and joined in the flood of liquid rock.

Not that even the solid portions of the ground were staying still. The whole island jumped continuously, sometimes leading to another eruption, but more often just rebelling against the eternal conflict between gravity and subterranean pressure. The shockwaves carried out past the land and into the sea, churning the waters into tidal waves that would travel miles before breaking.

Within days, the little volcanic island would be no more.

So far away that cataclysm was but a speck on a clean horizon, a boy and a girl contemplated the incident. "I can't believe we unleashed that. It's terrifying."

"Told we could do it."

"That kind of power shouldn't belong to anyone without the wisdom of the Spirits. Like Aang."

"Eh, wouldn't have any fun with it. But it's good for you and me to mix the Fire and Earth things for a little destructive fun. You could use more of that in your life."

"...are you flirting with me?"

**END**


	36. Family Again

_Toko Week is still walking the walk over on WithinOurTemptation's deviantArt page._

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**Toko Week - Family**

"My dad is the worst dad ever."

"No way. _My_ dad is the worst ever."

"My dad is much worse than your dad."

"My dad could beat your dad up."

"What? My dad was one of the greatest Firebenders who ever lived. He could definitely beat your dad."

"Yeah, but now your dad's a Loser Lord. My dad could totally take your dad."

"Oh, yeah? Well, my dad looks scarier than your dad."

"My dad doesn't need to be scary. My dad could buy and sell your dad and make a profit."

"My dad could just use his armies to conquer your dad."

"My dad could just buy up all the metal in the world, and when your dad's armies take losses trying to get to my dad, the price of metal will be so high, your dad and his armies won't be able to afford repairs for their tanks and have to give up.

"Wow, really?"

"No. You're cute when you're insecure."

"Oh. Thanks."

"You were supposed to say something like, 'Right back at you, kid!' or, 'You're cute, too, Toph,' or whatever."

"Sorry."

"...so, my mom is the worst mom ever."

"I'll take your word for it."

**END**


	37. Strength

_Well, this is my last entry for Toko Week. There's still one day to go, though, so check out WithinOurTemptation's deviantArt page if you like this pairing.  
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**Toko Week - Strength**

_Step 1: Initiate conversation._

The night was beautiful, according to the others, but the visuals were lost on Toph. The air felt a little cool to her, but that was okay. If all went well, she'd be acquiring a new source of warmth soon. On that note, she sensed Zuko was in the back of the Jasmine Dragon, getting a fresh pot of tea for everyone. Why he took such pleasure in pouring tea for his friends and uncle at these little gatherings, Toph would never understand. Must be a royalty-thing. Not that it was important. The young Earthbender ambled close by Zuko, and began mentally rehearsing her words.

Surprisingly, Zuko relieved her of some of the burden by speaking first. "I enjoy us all getting together like this. Don't tell anyone back in the Fire Nation, but it's hard keeping my back straight all the time. Sometimes, I just want to slump not worry about the image I'm projecting."

_Step 2: Lay mushy groundwork._

"Well, if you want your back cracked, I can help you out!" Toph made a fist and grinned.

Zuko was a moment late in replying. "I was kind of implying that I just like relaxing. Not that I have back problems."

"Oh." Stupid! "There's no one you can relax with back home?"

"Well, yeah. But I meant that here, I can do it public. Normally, it's limited to the private areas of the palace, when I'm with Mai and my personal servants."

Mai. Huh. "Well, any time you want to hang out, you don't need to wait for us to all swarm your uncle's tea shop. Just get word to me, and I'll make sure you get all the privacy and relaxation you need." Oh. That sounded really bad. That _definitely_ could have been worded better.

Fortunately, Zuko could be counted on to miss things like that. "Thanks, Toph. Maybe I'll take you up on that. When I get a chance." He reached for the teapot, to take out to the others.

_Step 3: Deliver Payload._

Toph very carefully and precisely leaned in front of the kitchen's door, in a very easy and casual manner. "No problem. You know me, I'm tough on you guys, but I'll always help the people I like."

He moved to angle around her. "I know, Toph. We appreciate it."

"And, I mean, you're one of those people. The ones I like." Should she stand in front of him? Knock the teapot out of his hands?

"It's nice of you to say so. You know we like you, too." He was leaning so that the hot pot wouldn't brush against her.

"But, you know, especially you, Zuko. I like you more than a lot of others." She couldn't stop him. May as well say it. "I like you in a special way. Really special."

His other hand moved, landed on her shoulder. "It's okay, Toph. I understand. I really like having you as a friend, too. We can uniquely relate. Mai is different from me in a lot of ways, and that's why she's so great for me. But you and I can be like the family we don't have." He gave a little sniff of amusement. "And neither of us like talking about it, so I'm really grateful you wanted to say so. Come on, let's get the others their tea."

_Step 4: Fail. And take it like a good, strong Earthbender._

"Okay."

**END**


	38. Are You Sure You Have the Right Cell?

**Are You Sure You Have the Right Cell?**

"I'll never forgive the man who killed my mother."

He cringed at that, the movement casting his features back into shadow. So little sun filtered into his cramped cage, and although the moon and the darkness give me strength, I couldn't help but feel a slight shiver shudder up my spine at the thought of being a Firebender forever cut off from the Light.

Away from the Light, his features were obscured, but I knew them well. They were so much like his son's, but unmarred in any way, even from the wrinkles that came from years of smiles and scowls. Whenever I saw that face, I couldn't help but think of the man Zuko might have become, had he not turned away from the dark path that destroyed Azula- the man Ozai had always been.

I reached through the bars, and wrapped my fingers gently around the beard that sprouted from his chin. An easy tug brought his face back into view, the shadows flowing behind him, mixed with his unwashed hair. I smiled down at the man who had once masterminded the subjugation of my world and the destruction of my people.

"But I am ready to forgive you."

**END**

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_Author's Note on the bottom this time, to preserve the surprise. This was a request for Katozai, and I just want to say I love the sound of the phrase, "a slight shiver shuddered"._


	39. I Got Over It

_Once again, an Avatar Spirit Drabble contest entry, listed as a general runner-up. The criteria this time was..._

**_Theme - Inhibitions_**  
**_Criteria:_  
_Spelling and Grammar_  
_Interpretation_  
_Creativity_**

_For the record, the odd switching of tense is deliberate._

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**I Got Over It  
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"You have to do it."

That's what she said, and I never want to make her mad, but it isn't right. Like stretching the wrong way, it would hurt and then I couldn't move the way I wanted to move and it would hurt some more and if I was doing it really wrong the hurt wouldn't stop even after I did, and then the doctor would have to come and someone would finally pay attention to me.

Broken.

I told her that my hands were tiny and if I did it they would break. People are soft but my hands can't even hold onto the turtleducks when I grab them out of the water and they quack quack quack and wiggle their little flipper feet and grab my fingers with their beaks. My fingers hurt even from a bite from a little turtleduck so how can I use them to hit like that and not break them forever?

I have lots of other reasons why I shouldn't do it but she shushed before I could say them. "It won't hurt. And if you don't, you'll make me mad, and then I'll have to hurt you. Do you think a little punch will hurt more than you'll make me hurt you?"

Azula can make me hurt really bad when she's mad. She's my friend and doesn't want to hurt me but there's something wrong with her kind of like Mai and sometimes they think they have to hurt people. I don't because it makes me sad when other people hurt and I think that's why I really don't want to do it. But Azula isn't bad! She's my friend and when I told what's really wrong she did her best to help me and didn't hurt me at all. She told me how to really get mad at the person I have to do it to. "Pretend they pushed you. Or took your apple. Maybe they're ugly. They're ugly and you don't like them, and you want them to go away and stop bothering you, and the way to make them leave is to hit them as hard as you can lots of times."

I wonder what will happen if I get so mad I can't hit them right. If I hit them right it will hurt and they won't be able to bend or move or make their life move through their body right, but they can get better from that and if I get mad and hit them wrong maybe they won't get better and maybe they'll die. I told that to Azula but she just laughed. "You're not that strong. It's too bad, because that would be really neat. Like my Firebending."

Die.

I really really tried my best and did like Azula said. I cried and cried and pretended I hurt myself but Azula knew I really didn't and why I was really crying. She helped me practice more and more and after a while I didn't cry. Azula was a really good teacher. I could turn my angry on and off like Azula did with candles, and one time I made myself mad enough that I hit Mai. She was surprised and started crying but I was mad enough that I didn't care. Later I hugged her and said sorry and cried, but she said it was okay and said she didn't care.

She said.

By the time I'm taller than the table I don't care anymore. I hit them and they go down but it doesn't hurt me and I know it hurts them but they'll move again in an hour and in a few days they won't be sore. It's different than when I was little and I hit people for practice. They swing swords and staffs and throw ice and rocks and wouldn't cry if I fell and fell and fell. I just hit people, and try not to hurt them too bad.

That's what Azula and Mai are for.

Azula helps you be who you really are.

I never killed anyone.

Azula's my friend.

**END**


	40. Weapons

_Maikka Week has begun! Check out my deviantArt page (loopy777 dot deviantart dot com) for info and themes._

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**Maikka Week - Weapons**

"Can you throw it?"

Sokka glanced over at Mai. Her voice had cut through the general murmur of appreciation. It was the first thing he'd heard her say the whole day. "If you want to, but it's not usually a good idea. That's how I lost my first one, throwing it to take out one of the Firebenders who were attacking me and Toph."

"And Boomerang!" Toph chimed happily. "You lost that, too."

Mai's eyes never left Sokka's new sword. "I thought your boomerang came back."

"Not always." Sokka wasn't sure he liked the way she was staring at his sword. Maybe he should have carved his name into it somewhere while it was being forged.

"So, you've been without a weapon since then?"

"No. I have not been without a weapon." Sokka felt his waning smile make the transition into a frown. "I have a club and a machete, and I got a new boomerang as soon as I got back to the Southern Water Tribe."

Suki smirked. "He actually has two of them, now."

Mai finally shifted her eyes away from Sokka's sword, and onto Suki. "Wow. Two. He could have taken out a whole other Firebender."

Unnoticed in the thickening tension, Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose.

Sokka stepped over by Suki. "Do you have a problem with my weapons, Mai?"

Mai met his challenging gaze for a few moments, but then her eyes sunk back to the sword in his hands. "Only that I'm a little jealous. I want a sword and boomerang, too."

"...you do?"

"Sure. I don't think there's such a thing as too many weapons. But none of mine come back, and they have to be thrown to get any range. That's why I carry so many; you can't touch me without brushing your finger up against something sharp."

Sokka gulped. "Yeah, I hope you don't expect me to test that."

Mai shrugged. "Whatever."

She didn't say anything else for the rest of the day.

**END**


	41. Snark

_Maikka Week is off to a great start! Check out my deviantArt profile at loopy777 dot deviantart dot com for the full list of themes!_

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**Maikka Week - Snark**

"Why are we here?"

"To see the play."

"Oh, thank you so much for that insight. That explains the stage up there!"

"Glad to clue you in. I know how much trouble you have with giant obvious things right in front of your face."

"Then maybe you can explain why we're here to see _this_ play?"

"Because I was in prison for saving your skin when everyone else decided to take a holiday and enjoy a night at the theater. From what Toph told me, I'll definitely enjoy this."

"Oh yeah, because you're such a barrel of fun. I'll bet you a bag of Fire Gummies that you'll fall asleep out of boredom before the first act is done."

"Whatever. You don't know me."

"Sure, because you're such a complicated person. Believe it or not, the fact that Zuko fell for your apathetic snark doesn't mean all guys are that dumb."

"If you're such a genius, then why do I have to explain why we're sitting here waiting for a play to start?"

"Because it makes no sense!"

"Fine."

"Fine."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...so, if _you're_ here to laugh at the play, what am _I_ doing here? Ty Lee missed it, too."

"Obviously I harbor a deep self-loathing, and wasn't in the mood to cut myself again."

"Sure, sure, I believe you. Admit it, you wanted to share all the snacks I'll be buying."

"If I do, will you go get us some Fire Flakes already?"

"For _you_, Mai, _anything_."

"I am overcome with relief."

**END**


	42. Discrete

_Isn't Maikka Week fun? Check out my deviantArt page (loopy777 dot deviantart dot com) for the full description._

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**Maikka Week - Discrete**

It was obviously supposed to be a secret, but that was a spectacular failure. Everyone knew in short order.

The first to be aware was Toph, of course. She still hadn't quite re-mastered the use of a bed, but had progressed to accepting a blanket to go along with her comfortable patch of floor. Toph was awakened by voices resonating slightly through the house's physical structure, and then, as consciousness slowly took hold, she distinctly felt Sokka dart out of Mai's room and back into his own.

Toph instantly shook off the last of the drowsiness, and her useless eyes widened with surprise. She felt around for a way to tell what time it was, but found only frustration.

Katara had better luck. So to speak.

After growing up at the South Pole, the concept of a sun that moved steadily across the sky at the same rate every twenty-four hours was almost quaint. She quickly determined, after being awakened by the distinct sound of Sokka's muttering passing by the door to her bedroom, that the sun had only just begun its journey. She cracked her door open and took a peak, and nearly gave a shout of surprise.

The only thing to see in the hallway was Mai, wearing a dressing robe, her hair loose and mussed from her pillows, giving a quick sigh of annoyance and closing her own bedroom door, apparently thoughtlessly left open by a recent visitor. There was only one candidate, to Katara's knowledge. The Waterbender was instantly put off the idea of breakfast.

Others in the household were already awake at the time of the incident. Zuko rose with the sun, as he liked to remind uppity Waterbenders who bragged about beating him during a full moon or a near full moon or whatever, and he preferred to start his day by making a vulture-beeline to the kitchen for a cup of tea. He was just pouring some for himself when he heard footsteps in the hallway with all the bedrooms. The Fire Lord took his steaming mug and walked over to greet the newly awakened with an offer of freshly brewed tea.

Thus, he was just in time to see Sokka, clad only in his under-wrappings, step unhesitatingly into Mai's bedroom.

For all his inner-strength and worldliness, it was all the scarred Firebender could do to get his cup back to the kitchen table before his fingers lost all feeling. By the time he returned to his senses, the tea was quite cold.

The only other member of the group who was interested in breakfast at that point was Appa, whose five stomachs required near constant sustenance. Aang was usually content to let the Sky Bison make his own meals out of any hay that was nearby, but whenever Ty Lee visited, he would take her out at dawn to the rear courtyard's stables, to feed and play with Appa. The acrobat loved animals.

Aang had trouble sleeping without being able to hear Appa, so the stables were built right beside the private wing of the house. Therefore, the humans and Sky Bison were perfectly placed to hear Sokka's voice ring out of the window to Mai's bedroom. They couldn't make out the exact words over Appa's digestive rumbling, but they did catch something about Sokka not wearing any clothes. Ty Lee turned sharply to look at Aang, her eyes questioning. Aang thought about it for a minute, then with all the wisdom of his countless previous lives, shrugged and went back to offering Appa hay.

In her bedroom, Suki slept peacefully. As leader of a group of teenaged warrior girls, she was quite used to silliness in the early morning, and no longer let it bother her.

Needless to say, there was considerable fuss later in the, and Sokka and Mai were left wishing they had tried to be a bit more discrete.

_Knock, Knock._

_"Who's there?"_

_"Sokka."_

_"Sokka who?"_

_"I'm coming in, Mai."_

_"...I don't get it." The door began opening. Mai quickly grabbed the robe hanging beside her bed._

_Sokka was in his underwear. "Where's my boomerang, Mai?"_

_"Why are waking me up this early, and why aren't you wearing any clothes?"_

_"You took my boomerang again. I was getting dressed and couldn't find it."_

_"So for this, you barge into my bedroom. It's over there on the vanity. Take it and go."_

_"Why do you have to keep stealing it? Just ask if you want to use it."_

_"I want you to forget I have it when you go home."_

_"Real nice."_

_"Please leave my bedroom."_

**END**


	43. Demands

_I hope no one is sick of Maikka Week yet. As always, check out loopy777 dot deviantart dot com for more info._

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**Maikka Week - Demands**

"I'm bored. Entertain me."

"I'm hungry. Find me some food."

"I hate this place. Take me somewhere exciting."

Sokka didn't think of himself as an unreasonable person. Katara was the type to expect that the world would conform to her expectations and be peaceful and balanced and fair to women. Sokka, however, was just looking to get through each day with the people he loved safe and his stomach full. Making waves caused trouble, and trouble always seemed to find a way to center on Sokka, whether or not he was the one causing the trouble in the first place. Sure, he had demanded a real answer from Yue before the siege, and forgiveness from Suki on a number of occasions during the war, and Zuko's acceptance after the both the war and Suki, but that was hardly unreasonable. Those demands were designed to cause _less_ trouble.

Mai, however, considered a reasonable attitude to be a sign of weakness.

Maybe it was a Noble thing, or some kind of attitude problem common to the Fire Nation. It wasn't even that she would rattle off demands as they occurred to her, but she couldn't even be bothered to phrase them nicely. The word, "please," simply did not exist in Mai's vocabulary, and her voice just didn't include the capability to shift into soft or endearing tones.

She tossed out demands the way she tossed out sharp metal things- whenever she was bored, in great quantity, and with all her strength.

At first, Sokka had catered to her demands. It wasn't a conscious decision; it was just what boys first falling in love do. After he was able to once again see her faults, he tried twisting her demands back at her to teach her a lesson.

"Get me some fire flakes."

"Say please."

"..."

"I'm not getting you anything until you say it."

"..."

"OW!!!"

That hadn't gone well. So, being an idiot, he decided to escalate the conflict. He'd obligingly do whatever she asked, but somehow poison his offering in hopes of getting his point across. If she wanted fire flakes, she'd get fire gummies. If she wanted entertainment, he'd start quoting Toph's jokes. If she wanted to go somewhere interesting, he'd take her to visit Katara.

Turned out that strategy wasn't any less painful for him.

However, as dangerous as Mai could be, she was just one very effective warrior. Sokka, though? Sokka was an unstoppable military campaign waiting to happen. There wasn't any situation in the world that Sokka couldn't turn to his advantage, given enough time and resources. Fortunately, when it came to Mai, he could work quickly.

He began _anticipating_ her demands.

Boredom? Whenever she was sitting still and not engaging her brain. Food? She was always hungry three hours after every meal. A need to break something? Her fingers would start working in anticipation of fondling her sharp metal things. Alone time? She stopped talking and making eye contact.

It was simple, really, when you paid attention.

At first, Mai had been put off balance. Maybe she relied on her demands as an outlet of some kind? Or maybe she was trying to figure out what Sokka might have done wrong and was trying to make up for. As it went on, though, she grew increasingly more uncomfortable. She started mumbling her thanks afterward. Then came something Sokka wished he could record for all time- a surprised, "You didn't have to do that." He still marveled over that one, at times. The final step was even more shocking.

She reciprocated.

She tried to anticipate his own needs, and address them before he had to tell her. Granted, she wasn't very good at it, at first, but she figured it out eventually. That was one of the things about Mai that he truly felt was worth all her flaws; she could discern a vector, and plot an intercept faster than the human eye could see, so he had never to leave her behind.

"Come on, let's take you shopping."

Yeah, Mai could be a demanding girlfriend, but there was something beneath it all that Sokka truly loved.

**END**


	44. Failed Joke

**Maikka Week – Failed Joke**

His long lost girlfriend was lying lethargically on her cot when Sokka stepped into the cell. Without otherwise moving, Mai shifted her gaze from the empty space above her head and flung it towards the visitor with all the power and malice that usually accompanied her knife attacks.

Sokka grinned, realizing she didn't recognize him in his stolen guard uniform. "Per your request, I'm telling you I'm here to kill you."

Sokka considered that a good memory, only partially because of what it had started. He and Mai had been technical enemies when they first met, what with him being the Avatar's brother in all but blood and helping the kid to defeat the Fire Nation in the war, and Mai being the spoiled daughter of a noble from said Fire Nation. Sure enough, they had fought a few times after that, and some of Mai's attacks had been potentially lethal, but their eventual love had been written in the stars. The day she switched sides, for his sake, was one of the happiest of Sokka's life, and not just because of the awesome kiss he got. Still, there was something about that first encounter in her father's offices, when she had looked him over, and introduced herself with the immortal line, "Please tell me you're here to kill me."

The way she had appeared that day, so elegant and attractive without being anything like what he had previously considered beautiful, was a marked contrast to the way she was now. Instead of the flowing outfits that somehow obscured and showcased her figure at the same time, Mai was wearing the oversized shirt and pants that all the prisoners of the Boiling Rock were forced into. Her hair was still straight and long, but not as shiny as she liked to keep it, even when camping in the woods, and it was left completely unbound.

Yet she was still the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.

Mai hadn't yet replied. "You mean you don't recognize me?" he teased as he stepped towards her.

"I don't even notice you boring thugs. You could all look the same for all I care," was her endearing reply.

"Oh." Sokka had to repress the urge to giggle. This was going to be _good_. "Then maybe you'll recognize... this!" He dashed forward with puckered lips.

He stopped when he felt contact. Only, it wasn't the contact he had been expecting. Sokka looked down to see a jagged metal spike, haphazardly sharpened out of a piece of scrap metal- a _shank_- sticking out of a bloody hole in his tunic, just below the armor. The pain began racing through his chest, and Sokka realized with some disappointment that the weapon had been angled to pass straight through his heart.

The blood hit the floor first. Sokka's body followed, collapsing slowly as his willpower had less and less influence on the physical world. Finally, the helmet tumbled off as his head cracked back against the filthy floor.

The last thing Sokka saw before he died was Mai's shocked and horrified face as she finally recognized him. The last thing he heard was her provocatively harsh voice uttering the most emotional exclamation he had ever heard from her.

"Oops."

**END**


	45. Not Here

_Maikka Week is now entering its second... week? I guess I better just call it Maikka Fortnight from now on. Incidentally, if all this Maikka stuff that's completely overtaking the internet has you intrigued about the pairing, you should check out Menamebephil's stuff, especially his Maikka Week series, "The Crow and the Butterfly". And I'm not promoting this in return for his plug for me, I really think he's capturing everything fun about the pairing. At the end of this week, I'll be compiling a list of all the participating entries, so you can look forward to more stuff then._

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**Maikka Week - Not Here**

Katara waited at the foot of the gangplank so that she could be the first to greet her brother and his betrothed. Thus, she got the full impact of the look that landed on Mai's face, a gaping expression of complete and utter horror. The Fire Nation noble's gaze passed right by Katara's head, and was fixated on the Southern Water Tribe's primary settlement.

Home.

Sokka began babbling loudly and he hugged his sister, commenting on how good it was to be with her again, then moving on to various exclamations about the many changes to their home, without pausing for breath. Katara's heart warmed at the familiar display of her brother's happiness, and a content smile spread widely across her own face. Then she caught sight of Mai again, and a little chill tingled at the center of her heart.

Mai still looked like she had just stumbled across the body of a loved one.

Katara also noticed that the Fire Nation girl was wearing both a heavy cloak and a parka, and yet she still hugged herself with an intensity that could very well be generating its own gravity. Had she ever been in an environment this cold? Could she get used to it?

Sokka finally remembered his beloved companion, and swung over to put an arm around Mai and formally introduce his home village. Something about the contact with Sokka jolted her out of her waking catatonia, and instantly the usual crafted expression of apathy was back on her face.

"So where do you keep the _real_ buildings? Behind these little snow forts?"

He didn't laugh out loud, but Katara could tell that Sokka appreciated the attempt at humor. His smile tilted to a smirk, and his eyes met Mai's for an eloquent moment. Katara, however, didn't find it funny. (Honestly, she rarely thought Mai's jokes were in good taste, never mind humorous.) The Waterbender couldn't help but feel that the joke had a little too much truth in it. Mai's eyes were narrowed, and her back's usual stiffness actually looked unnatural for a change. She still hugged herself, and didn't lean into Sokka like she usually did when they were in contact. Mai must be miserable.

That's when Katara realized it. She knew where her brother would finally settle down and start a family.

Not here.

Katara and Aang had been married only a short while, but they had traveled together with few breaks since the Avatar had first emerged from his iceberg. They had long ago mastered the art of compromise, the most important factor in a long-term relationship. From what she had heard, Sokka and Mai had more or less (was it really necessary to involve knives in domestic arguments?) done the same.

Mai wasn't going to live at the South Pole. Sokka, at the same time, wanted to spend his life with her.

Someday, their father would retire as Chief, or... Sokka had always been everyone's first candidate for succeeding Hakoda. He had shown real leadership skills both throughout the war and afterward, and plenty of odd but effective wisdom. He had proven himself as a warrior many times, and his talent for invention was already helping to improve life in the tribe. Sure, he had a long way to go yet before he could be counted on as reliably as their father, but he had the potential.

Mai was going to waste that potential.

Maybe she should let it go, but Katara wouldn't be Katara if she didn't have hope. Mai was miserable now, but there was time to change her mind, maybe get her to warm up to the snow and igloos and crisp icy water. Katara would certainly try.

A thought struck.

Maybe a parka with room for all her knives would be a start...

**END**


	46. Grumpy

_Yeah, still Maikka Week. You know the deal by now. This is a sequel to "Snark".  
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**Maikka Week - Grumpy**

"Well, that has officially killed the whole evening."

"Better the evening than that actor."

"In your opinion."

"That's right. It's also the opinion of the actor himself, the owner of the theater, and that freakishly big guy who made sure we left without throwing knives at anyone else."

"I could have taken him."

"And I thank you for not attempting it. Really."

"Spoilsport."

"Hey, I'm not opposed to having a good time. Honestly, I think even you would have picked up on that by now. But I kind of don't want to be arrested for any of those good times. Katara's been captured more times than I have, and it's a point of pride to keep it that way."

"Eh, Zuko could have gotten us out."

"Of jail?"

"He is the Fire Lord."

"Oh, he would _love_ that. Coming down to the local holding prison to bail out his girlfriend and his Water Tribe buddy."

"He'd understand, once I told him why I did it."

"...why _did_ you throw the knife? I thought you were enjoying the play."

"I was, until _he and she_ started."

"What?"

"Weren't you watching?"

"Yeah. You got out of jail, and then you kissed Zuko, and were going to announce to us that you were joining the Kyoshi Warriors when... oh."

"Finally catching up?"

"Mai, is it really that big a deal? Or do you just hate the reminder of wearing that makeup?"

"Aren't _you_ insulted by it? They're insinuating that you can't tell your girlfriend apart from any other girl when they're in that clown makeup."

"Not necessarily."

"No?"

"They could have been implying that I'm attracted enough to you, that I'd kiss you in full view of everyone, and then lie about thinking you're Suki. I mean, as stupid as Play Me is, even he should be able to tell Play You and Play Suki apart just by the hair styles, even if you are dressed the same."

"..."

"...Mai?"

"...HA HA HA HA HA HA oh HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!"

"Oh my La, she's laughing."

"Oh! Ha. Okay, that was good. Really."

"I guess you're welcome. I mean, wow, I made you laugh. That's like... huh. Anyway, you're not feeling grumpy anymore?"

"I laughed so hard I'm dizzy."

"That means you're out of practice. Here, lean on me."

"...oh, I get it. Now you're flirting with me as a follow-up joke. It was better as a one-shot."

"I should have stayed back with the others."

**END**


	47. Mortal

_So Maikka Fortnight is still early in its second week, and this time we have the unneeded sequel to my previous "Failed Joke" entry._

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**Maikka - Mortal**

To be honest, she had given up hope that Sokka would ever come. Mai had read plenty of stories in which the captured Ladies pine confidently for their heroes, but she really couldn't work up the energy.

Then came the day when her cell door opened, and it wasn't Azula or her uncle. Today. It was a guard, young, who was far too jaunty to be in a female prisoner's cell. That kind of thing led to problems. He talked, of course. All the guards in the Boiling Rock thought they were masters of sarcasm, poets whose lesser gifts were needed in times of war.

They had nothing on Sokka.

This guy had been insistent, despite the warning her demeanor should have been conveying. He was so thick, he rushed her with his lips puckered, and thought he could actually get away with that. He wasn't so thick that her shank didn't reach his heart when she slammed it into his chest.

It was Sokka, of course, trying to do that playful banter the hero always indulged in while rescuing the lady. Mai briefly considered using the shank to put a hole in her own heart, just so that she wouldn't have to react to anything. Of course, that would be stupid.

The door opened, and Zuko joined the party. Sure, why shouldn't her childhood crush be here, too? Her father was probably driving the giant drill that had been used to breach the prison, with her mother overseeing the Airbender army providing defense, and Tom-Tom playing with the periscope. Zuko looked just as horrified as she felt, and for a second she had the pleasant thought that he would assume she was a traitor and attack her. "What did you do?!?" he asked instead.

"He came onto me!"

Zuko looked at Mai, then back down at Sokka's corpse. "I thought you two had already moved past that stage."

"I didn't recognize him! He was pretending to be a guard! What was I supposed to think?"

"He..." Zuko put a hand to his forehead and sighed. "Okay, this is bad."

"Wow, did you come to that conclusion yourself?"

Zuko eyed her in a not particularly friendly way. "Shouldn't you be a bit more broken up?"

"Shouldn't you know me well enough not to have to ask that?"

"...okay, fair enough." Come to think of it, shouldn't Zuko be a bit more broken up? Granted, the last time Mai saw him, he had just joined up with Azula again, but hey, apparently Sokka hadn't been holding that against him if they were here together. "So, we need to do something about this. Okay, I'm in charge now. I have to think."

He's doomed.

There was a voice from behind him, outside the cell. "What's going on in there?" Another guard, a female. She didn't sound like Sokka's sister. Maybe she was someone new? Oh, an actual guard. What are the odds? Mai couldn't bring herself to care.

Zuko, bless him, recovered his wits and pretended to be on her side. Both the guy on the floor and the prisoner had gotten a little too feisty. Zuko didn't sound very convincing. Granted, he had always been a terrible liar, but his nausea certainly wasn't... oh, it _was_ helping him to sound sincere. The female guard recognized Mai as the Warden's niece. Any punishment would have to wait for his word.

"Stay put," Zuko whispered to her through the door after he locked her in again. "I'll figure something out and come back for you."

Stay put. After he locked the door. He was now the brains of what Mai was assuming to be a planned rescue attempt.

Back to hopeless waiting, then.

Zuko might come back and rescue her. Or Uncle Warden would come to a decision and deal with her. Or figure out that the dead guard wasn't one of his. Or, hey, maybe Azula would show up and do something horrible just to be horrible. Or that stupid comet would arrive and everyone would die in the Fire Lord's purging flames.

Sokka was gone now. She did it.

Life was boring to Mai, but she usually found sudden reminders of her mortality more engaging. Usually.

Maybe someday, it would be that way again.

She waited until after Sokka's father, who Zuko found was coincidentally also being held in the Boiling Rock, masterminded an escape to tell him exactly what happened to his son.

It was close, but in the end, he didn't kill her. Oh well.

**END**


	48. Ever Loyal

_Maikka Fortnight is over, but my debt to corporate America (and my devotion to the now completed "Mai's Ramblings") prevented me from posting this until now. I hope everyone had fun with this event! Keep an eye on my deviant art page (loopy777 dot deviantart dot com) for a full link list of Maikka Week/Fortnight's bounty.  
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**Maikka Week - Ever Loyal**

"Mai, you're not standing in the right spot."

That.

Was.

It.

"Oh, glorious Agni in the sky above _forbid_ I'm not in the exact right spot going into the _fourth_ hour of this rehearsal!

The most practical members of the group, namely Haru and Teo, began backing up. That wouldn't save them from Mai's knives, but at least they wouldn't be in the way if she decided to attack someone else.

Sokka at least seemed to recognize the danger, even if he wasn't going to be smart about dealing with it. "I just want everything to be perfect." He fired up his most charming smile. "The perfect girl deserves the perfect wedding."

Mai increased the intensity of her scowl, and began stalking towards her betrothed. "I am not perfect. You are not perfect. No one here is perfect. _Nothing in this dull little world is perfect_. If I'm not standing in the right place, or Toph isn't standing in the right place, or Katara isn't here at all, or Aang and that stupid lemur wake up in each other's bodies, our wedding will not be any less valid, and we will not be any less married. Anything else is just..." Her energy began to drain, leaving the old quite feeling of boredom in its place. "...just a waste of time."

She was practically nose to nose with Sokka now. Nearby, Aang was looking at Momo with an odd look on his face. Katara and Toph were probably getting ready to rustle up a good tantrum of their own. At the edge of the grouping, Hakoda was observing passively.

Sokka was still. "Are you saying that marrying me is a waste of time?"

"Yes, Sokka, that's exactly what I'm saying. Providing, of course, that you weren't listening to a word I said." Mai walked away. She just picked a random direction that didn't lead into a wall or a person and didn't stop until she was alone.

Mai liked being alone.

Well, she liked being alone when she was in a mood like this. A thought made her smirk; Zuko often displayed the same behavior, back during his time as the Fire Princes Restored. It had driven her crazy, worse than Ty Lee had ever managed. Really, though, it wasn't always a bad thing. Zuko used his alone time to work himself into an even deeper depression. Mai, however, just needed to retreat sometimes. She had to put a lot of effort into acting human, mostly for Sokka's sake, and there came a point where she just couldn't keep up the screen.

Four hours of wedding rehearsals were definitely past the point of being reasonable.

What was the big deal, anyway? It was just at wedding, more trappings of a world obsessed with tiresome ritual. Would a formal marriage stop them from leaving each other if the love stopped? Would it keep them safe from danger? Would it somehow keep day to day life from becoming boring if Sokka didn't keep up his efforts?

Mai could really go for a fruit tart.

She heard Sokka come up behind her. His footsteps were near inaudible, but the formal beads he was wearing clicked together. "That was ridiculously dramatic of me, wasn't it?" she offered.

"A little, but it's been hours since lunch. I'm feeling a little off, myself."

"At least I didn't throw anything. Or shout at your sister."

"It's just as well. Katara's feet were starting to hurt, too, so she might have taken you up on an offer to fight."

Mai tried to find the idea amusing. It wasn't hard. "I don't think marrying you is a waste of time."

"I know."

"But if you make me stand there for another hour, I _will_ stab you."

"Water Tribe ceremonies are an important part of family life."

Mai sighed. "And we all know how big I am on family. But you like it."

"Well," Sokka grinned, "I have a pretty good one. And it's only getting better."

"Okay then. Compromise. We do your ridiculous barbarian wedding ceremony, and you trust the woman who routinely pins flies to the wall with her knives from a hundred paces to stand in the right spot when the big day comes. Deal?"

"Deal."

That was it.

**END**


	49. Soft Whispers and Little White Lies

_This next piece has no Mai in it! It's another one of my Avatar Spirit Drabble Contest entries, once again coming in a generic second-place shared by all non-winners. I admit, I really pushed the rules here, but the fic took over from my original plan._

THEME: Little White Lies  
CRITERIA  
Timeline. Your story must take place sometime during the series. No AUs or before/afters allowed.  
Reasoning. What is the motive behind this little white lie? Did you break the window? Telling her that her butt doesn't look big in that dress? Or is there no reason behind it at all?  
Creativity. Yes, this is the given. But I just wanted to state what we all know: Azula always lies. So dig a little deeper than that.

* * *

**Soft Whispers and Little White Lies**

The Fire Sages didn't give advice to just anyone. Most of the Fire Nation's peasantry had never seen a Fire Sage in anything but illustration; those in the more rural areas would have never even encountered that much. The nobles in the capitol city, however, were quite used to consulting with the Learned Men of the Great Element, if just for political purposes.

Commander Shuang was not one to worry about such petty pursuits.

Yet, here he sat, in one of the Capitol Temple's ornate reflection rooms. Much like the decor in the royal palace itself, the temple was built from dark woods and kept in shadows. The walls were covered in deep red fabrics, while the floors took on a glossy appearance from the fire-resistant coating used to seal them. The room was lit only by open flames, the burning bowls scattered throughout the over-sized chamber in a pattern of some spiritual significance.

Shuang did not know what the pattern was supposed to achieve. He only knew that there was barely enough ambient light to see by.

Normally, the reflection room would be occupied by a single person, who would use the solitude and the presence of the holy flames to meditate and achieve oneness with the Great Element. Shuang, however, had requested a consultation with one of the Fire Sages. He had questions that could not be answered by any amount of quiet contemplation.

The Sage had not given a name. Perhaps he expected Shuang to know it. The commander, however, would be the first to admit that he could have spent more time with his religious studies as a youth. He had entered the military young, in order to bring new honor and glory to the family after Father's indiscretions, and had been forced to work hard to keep up with the other nobles in officer training. Shuang had never been particularly bright, but he was honest and hardworking, and had eventually shown a good degree of competence on the battlefield. He would never be the greatest of the Fire Nation's tacticians, but Shuang had proven to be cool-headed and adaptable, and more than willing to listen to the right kind of advisors. He had risen to the rank of Commander in the Southern Fleet, and had always been quite forthcoming about the men under him who had helped him along the path.

That's not to say that Shuang didn't care for religion. He truly revered the Great Element, and all his actions- honoring his family, serving his nation, respecting his men- were expressions of his love for the Fire. Fire was the foundation of all civilization, and the only way to pay proper thanks for such a gift was to share it with the whole world, and love its works with all his heart.

The implementation of that idea, however, was the origin of Shuang's crisis of faith.

"I am but a simple military mind," he explained to the sage, "and unworthy to ponder such mysteries, but doubts have been introduced that continue to unsettle me."

"It is dangerous for those at the forefront of the Great March of Civilization to be... unsettled," the Sage stated without tone.

"Thank you for understanding, Wise One." Shuang gave a respectful half-bow from his sitting position. "It is my hope that I leave this temple with new resolve."

"Speak your troubles."

"I serve in the Southern Fleet, and amongst my duties is the raiding of the Southern Water Tribe and the capture of its Waterbenders. We have had great success with hit and run tactics, staying only long enough to seize a handful of the Benders, and fleeing before they can gather and coordinate a counter-attack. Slowly but surely, we are depleting them of their Bending population. Intelligence reports confirm our success, and even the appearance of their settlements reflect our victories, as they no longer have the capacity to maintain their larger ice-based structures."

"You honor the Great Element with your success."

"The honor is mine, Wise One, but you cut straight to the burning heart of my difficulties."

"Elaborate."

"As part of our intelligence-gathering, I have observed the Tribal barbarians in their settlements. The loss of their Benders is hurting them socially and personally. Life becomes more difficult for them, as it would if the Fire Nation lost our own Benders, with nothing to separate the suffering of the warriors from the civilian population. I feel a certain... sympathy for them."

The Sage's face hardened. "Do you not believe in the superiority of the Great Element? That they are beneath us for their lack?"

"I do!" Shuang assured. "Yet, I have trouble reconciling why they need suffer for their lack. Truly, the Fire would be a great gift to them, and the spreading of the Fire is our highest calling. But... they seemed content enough without it. If they are not wise enough to appreciate the gift, why do we war with them? Would it not be better to wait for them to advance enough to be worthy? If they suffer for the Fire before learning of its holiness, could they not be poisoned against it?" He closed his eyes and lowered his head. "No doubt the Fire Sages and our Lord have considered such things, but I am merely a soldier, and the question haunts me."

The Sage nodded. "Be assured, and be at peace, Commander. The barbarians, because of their alignment with the lesser elements, are not capable of finding appreciation for the Fire on their own. The longer they live away from it, the harder it is for them to discover the true path. It is a painful necessity that they must suffer, and it is our burden to inflict that suffering for their own good. Know, Commander, that their descendants will be grateful to us for this war, and that it is in our own suffering, yours pangs of conscience, that you show a true devotion to the Great Element. Those who serve for their own gain are less holy than those who pain alongside the barbarians for the sake of the Fire."

Shuang bowed, this time all the way to the floor. "Thank you for your teachings, wise one."

It was with a slightly lighter heart that Shuang arrived at his family's mansion later that day. He was looking forward to returning to the Southern Seas, to see if the Sage's revelations would fortify him against the wailings of the decimated Water Tribes.

He found a squad of the crimson-armored Royal Firebenders waiting for him. They were the last to see him alive.

Commander Shuang's replacement would be a less religious man.

**END**


	50. The Worse Reflection

_Here's a little something from my archives. I'm not positive, but I think my brother gave me the original idea. This is actually a modified version of the original piece, edited make it work better with what we know of the Spirit World._

* * *

**The Worse Reflection**

"Are you sure you want to see this?"

Zuko mustered his fiercest glare and stared with all the intensity he could command at the Avatar. "She's my mother."

Aang didn't flinch. "That's why I'm asking. This is a sight you'll never forget. Even if we find a way to reverse it, seeing it could permanently damage your feelings for her."

"Not seeing it would do the same. I can't run from this, Aang. I don't know how to run. I've always kept moving forward."

Aang sighed. "If that's what you want. I can't make this decision for you, and I'll help you any way I can, but I think you're making a mistake."

"Thank you. Just... I really appreciate all you've done." Zuko almost felt tears forming in his eyes, and did what he could to clamp down on his emotions. What he was about to see would require all his strength. "Let's go."

Aang led him to the turtleduck pond in the Royal Gardens. The animals had been cleared away, so the water was flat and undisturbed. Zuko looked down at his reflection, at the scar on his face, reminding himself of the strength he could bring to bear against his life's tragedies. Aang's voice floated in the air around him. "The pond is now a special place in this world. I built a connection to the Spirits' realms, anchored to a replica in one of the shifting planes. I thought a pleasant memory would be the best shelter for her. When you look through the water, it will seem as though you're looking into a trick mirror, your place taken by her image."

The Fire Lord took a deep, calming breath. "Show me."

Aang's hand reached to the water, his tattoos glowing with that terrible light Zuko had once feared. The Avatar's finger skimmed the pool's surface, sending out the slightest ripple across the smooth water. A new reality began to write itself in the shallow pond.

His mother was sitting under the same tree that stood behind Zuko, at the edge of the water. She had a loaf of bread in here hand, wherever it could have come from, and she lethargically pulled it apart. When Ursa had a handful of crumbs, she scattered them slowly into the water, and it looked to Zuko like they were falling towards him. Turtleducks paddled over to the floating treats and plucked them out with their beaks, quacking happily. Ursa sat still as they ate, showing no reaction to them. Yet, when they had finished and swam away again, she raised the bread once more and began shredding it.

It was as if the bread were connected to Zuko. For every chunk she tore off, another piece of his heart was ripped away. He heard an anguished cry of, "Why?" and only realized it was himself when he recognized his own voice.

Aang's eyes were closed as he answered. "It was judgment. For all that she failed to prevent from happening. And..." The Avatar trailed off.

Zuko couldn't stay standing, and sank to his knees. His vision was starting to cloud with darkness, and he could no longer feel the breeze around him. His senses were quickly failing. "Tell me the whole thing." He swallowed awkwardly, his mouth somehow dry, and he couldn't hear himself anymore. "Get it over with."

Aang grabbed Zuko by the shoulders, seeing that his friend was seconds away from fainting. "Part of it was a punishment for you. Koh felt you hadn't suffered enough for everything you did while serving your father."

Zuko moaned and slumped to the ground, no longer able to stave off the darkness. Aang quickly grabbed the young Fire Lord and hurried him back into the palace proper, calling for a healer. On the other side of the water, Ursa continued the feeding, as though time didn't pass for her. Aang didn't know.

But then, this was the Avatar's first experience with a human whose face had been taken.

**END**


	51. Jabberwhumpy

_Been a while, eh? I'm working on a multi-chapter fic, and I'm nearing the end of my drabble archives. The remaining pieces pretty much all deal with Mai or Maiko, so I'm going to spread them out. For now, I have another Avatar Spirit Drabble Contest entry (generic runner-up since only a winner was announced), and during this week I'll have some Ty Luko Week participation.  
_

**_Theme: Whump! What's a whump fic? It's basicly a hurt/comfort fic, but the there's a repeated amount of hurt and it's called whumping by that fandom. You are free to do anything under these guidelines: at least one character must under go first 'hurt' (which may be implied, meaning you don't even have to write the whumping itself) then 'comfort.'_**

Criteria: The Three C's  
Comfort- Regardless of the severity or amount of whump that is done, there is always that bittersweet moment of comfort at the end that makes it all worth reading.  
Creativity  
Custard- Comfort includes comfort food. Include custard somewhere in your drabble. Try not to put it in the obvious place, unless there's a significant reason.  


* * *

**Jabberwhumpy**

Zuko walked into the dining room to find the whole group hanging out. Ignoring their antics, he went over to Aang and deposited the dish of frozen custard in front of him. "This is for you."

Aang looked impressed. "Great! Why?"

"I just wanted to convey my gratitude for that time, after I rescued you from Zhao's fortress. You stayed with me until I regained consciousness, and I attacked you when you asked if we could be friends. That was wrong."

Suddenly, all other conversation ceased. The greatest sign of danger was Sokka's amused expression. "Aang, you didn't tell us about any of this! You just said that Zuko saved you!"

Aang shrugged. "He got hit in the mask he was wearing by an arrow. I think it was blunted or something. Anyway, it knocked him out and he wouldn't wake up. I just wanted to make sure he was okay, so I waited until he came to. Head injuries can be serious, you know."

"Could have fooled me, the way Zuko takes a dive." Sokka stalked over to the increasingly annoyed Fire Prince. "So you slept the night away while Aang watched over you, eh?"

Behind him, Toph grabbed Katara's head and began cuddling it. The Waterbender gave a yelp and looked quite disturbed. "Aw," Toph cooed, "little princey needs cuddles to feel better."

Sokka grinned wide. "Is that how it was, Zuko? Were you fading in and out of the darkness, your balance gone, wishing you had something to stabilize you?"

"And then Twinkletoes was beside you, his hands anchoring you to the solid Earth, and you couldn't help but hold him in return."

Sokka paced around the grimacing Zuko. "Did you cry out, and Aang assured you he was there? Did the pain make you nauseous, until Aang's cool hand brought relief?"

Toph promptly slapped a hand across Katara's forehead. The Waterbender tried to protest, but Toph didn't seem to care. "Feel better, baby. Aangy Wangy is here to keep you safe!"

Sokka stopped in front of Zuko, and leaned towards the Firebender. "Is that why you're bringing him frozen custard? To convey the sweet coolness you felt when he comforted you?"

Toph kissed Katara's head with all the force she usually put into her affectionate punches. "Have some cool sweetness, sweetness!"

Zuko gently pushed Sokka back a few steps. "Aang likes deserts. I know this little shack that sells great frozen custard, and thought of Aang when I was getting some. I bent the heat away from it to keep it cool for him. To show my gratitude and apologize for my bad behavior. You might want to look into that concept some time."

Zuko began walking away.

"Where are you going?" Sokka asked.

"To my room." Zuko realized that his audience wasn't mature enough to get the right idea. "To sulk!"

Katara finally tore her head out of Toph's grasp. "Great, now I have a headache."

That got Aang's attention. "Here, have some of my frozen custard."

"Aw, thanks. That's sweet."

**END**


	52. Another Life

_It's Ty Luko Week! For more info, including dates and themes, check out TyLuk04Ever dot deviantart dot com. I really need to write more Ty Lee, so this should be a good opportunity._

_

* * *

  
_

**Another Life**

It was _really_ hard to remain stoic.

Zuko had a lot of motivation, though. The most important reason, of course, was Azula. If she caught her brother laughing with Ty Lee, smiling at Ty Lee, staring at Ty Lee, or otherwise pretending that the human entity known as Ty Lee held some significance for him, his don't-call-it-a-crush would become a tool of torture for the little fiendish sister.

That girl Mai helped. Her face never moved. Zuko tried to emulate her.

Also, Zuko was quite aware of his feelings. He was just turning twelve, and naturally he would start to take an interest in girls. Someday, he would be Fire Lord, and it would be his duty to choose a good and honorable woman to be his royal wife, someone just like... It was perfectly logical that one of his sister's ever-present little girlfriends would be the first to catch his eye.

Sometimes, though, it was all Zuko could do not to forget to breathe in her presence.

He couldn't even say she was special in any way. There was just something about Ty Lee's bright face, so often smiling in ways Zuko had always wanted to. Her grace (too easy to be human), pretty hair (the way it spilled when she was upside-down was especially intriguing), her sweet scent (perfume? ...no, she didn't seem the type yet), and sparkling personality were all just icing on the cake.

Zuko knew it was just a silly crush. (_Don't call it a crush!_) He had more concrete things to work at, like his Firebending, and learning how to lead his nation.

Sometimes, though, he did it all for a dream of Ty Lee.

_Iroh's voice was sly. "So, I hear you've taken a lady friend..." Even now that Zuko was Fire Lord and the world had entered a new age of peace, Iroh still had his favorite topics._

_"Yeeeeaaaaah," came Zuko's responding drawl._

_"Do I know her?"_

_"I think so. It's Mai."_

_The name seemed to ring a bell with Iroh. "The acrobat?"_

_"No! The gloomy one with the knives!" Zuko's tone was almost insulted._

_"Ah yes. Her. I hope you don't call her that to her face." A pause. "I would have thought you'd go for the acrobat. You had such a cute little crush on her when you were-"_

_"That was so long ago I can barely remember it. There's no one but Mai now, and there's never been anyone but Mai."_

_"Ah."_

**END**


	53. Safety Net

_I'm a day late with this Ty Luko Week prompt (all of them can be found at TyLuk04Ever dot deviantart dot com), but it wound up twice as long as I planned. What is it with me and the non-bender warriors?_

* * *

**Ty Luko Week - Safety Net**

_"It's not that I have a problem with it, but... is it really necessary? I have the Royal Firebenders, and I'm known to be pretty good at fighting myself."_

_"Your dry humor is improving. Anyway, it certainly can't hurt to have a set of Earth Kingdom guards as well, right? This is going to be a very open event, and there's always the possibility of danger."_

_"Suki's right, Zuko! I mean, Fire Lord! Just think of me as your safety net. I never needed one, but I always felt better when I had it."_

_"That's a good point. Okay, Ty Lee. My safety is now your responsibility, among others."_

Ty Lee liked the Earth Kingdom's penchant for celebrations. Now that they weren't being systematically wiped out and enslaved by a conquering army, its people loved throwing parties. Sure, the festivities were never as bright and flashy as the Fire Nation's, but they happened a lot more often in the Earth Kingdom. Even the visiting Fire Lord got one in his honor. Plus, while the Fire Nation limited their festivals to the night time, when the flames and fireworks would appear their brightest, the Earth Kingdom had no issue with starting things in the daylight and letting the fun last as many days and nights as it could.

Of course, that was a really long time to be on guard duty.

Anyone who didn't know Ty Lee might think her distracted by all the revelry, but those kinds of people wouldn't know Azula, either, and so they really couldn't be expected to have any idea what seemingly pleasant teenage girls were truly capable of. Ty Lee tracked Zuko (Fire Lord Zuko!), his Royal Guard, the other Kyoshi Warriors, and the civilians around them the same way she kept track of all four of her limbs while dancing on a tight-wire and playing with several circus props. In other words, it was so easy as to be almost subconscious, so long as the safety net was there to ease any worries.

Things went well and stayed quiet (well, quiet for a city-wide party, which wasn't very quiet at all but wasn't anywhere as noisy as, say, a giant drill) for almost forty-five minutes. Then the bombs went off.

Earth Kingdom investigators would later explain to Ty Lee and the other warriors that the explosives were actually surplus from the Fire Nation, probably stolen and later sold on the black market. The capsules, similar to the kind launched by the cannons on the War Zeppelins, had been moved underground by terrorist Earthbenders and buried at strategic points in the city. It was impossible to tell, from the leftover bits, whether the bombs had been rigged with timers of some sort, or manually set off when Zuko neared them.

The masked attackers who materialized out of the smoke immediately after the explosions were a good argument for the latter.

With said smoke around, and a possible concussion doing its best to ruin Ty Lee's undefeatable balance, it was hard to figure out the full effects the explosions. People who could have been civilians were screaming, and various figures in varying states of wholeness littered the ground amidst the rubble, a bunch of them wearing red armor or green uniforms. Something niggled at the back of Ty Lee's mind, just as she was considering picking a fight with the masked people rushing at her.

Zuko!

Fire Lord Zuko!

A quick spin on the tip of one foot found the Fire Lord a short distance away, mostly standing upright. His hair and clothes and skin were filthy mess. He was Firebending, and in her current state Ty Lee found the flames a bit too captivating, but before a full second had passed her focus returned and she noticed the additional masked men (and maybe some women?) actually battling the Fire Lord.

Oh. The other guys who were nearly upon her probably wanted to attack Zuko, too. She instantly (Fire Lord Zuko!) decided to go all out on them.

One of the silly masked men actually ran past her, on his way to the Fire Lord. He must not have considered Ty Lee a threat. Granted, she probably looked as bad as Zuko did right now, and even when she was perfectly lucid, people like Mai said she had a "vapid" look to her.

Ty Lee swung a leg out at the man's midsection and knocked the air, food, and maybe a few bones right out of him. He went down, but his momentum twisted him over her leg and deposited his face heavily into the ground.

That worked well.

Normally, Ty Lee didn't like to hurt people. Her style of fighting focused on hitting certain pressure and chi points that everyone's bodies had, with various temporary effects ranging from disorientation to muted bending to complete paralysis in a limb. The spots she hit typically bruised and remained sore for days afterwards, but none of it was particularly painful.

That was when she feeling clear-headed. Right now, everything had a fuzzy look to it, people were likely dead, and Zuko looked both awful and in danger. Being nice might not be in the cards.

Four attackers. Three on her left, one on her right, spread out over a distance of several meters.

No problem.

Ty Lee bent backwards into a handstand, and pushed herself up into the air, the natural motion of the maneuver swinging her feet back downward without any additional effort. The whole movement, including the subsequent flight that brought her a full four meters into the air, took a quarter-second. It was hard to be a hand-to-hand specialist in a world of benders and weapons masters, and only the very fastest could compete. Among them, it was Ty Lee who was the chosen executor of the Fire Princess Azula during the war, and it wasn't out of any sense of sentimentality. Ty Lee simply moved faster than thought itself. Even better, she moved with a precision that allowed her to casually pluck flying arrows out of the air.

That was a neat trick. She and Mai had made a game of it.

That's why the running masked man didn't even notice Ty Lee until her boots connected hard on the top of his head. He didn't notice his skull taking the full brunt of her landing because he was already unconscious.

This left Ty Lee in a crouch, facing in the opposite direction of the other three attackers, but that wasn't a problem. She rose, spun in place, and snapped forward into a cartwheel in a single breath. The ground was covered in too much debris to keep cartwheeling, but that was okay. It would take too much time. Instead, Ty Lee built up just enough momentum for a truly spectacular leap forward. It carried her past all three of the attackers, and without disrupting her flight, she was able to reach out and slam her fists into each of them multiple times. She aimed for their pressure points, but didn't take care to precisely moderate the force of the blows, and did a kind of bad thing and made the extra effort to dig a knuckle in after each punch.

All the masked men knew was that a green blur flew across their vision, and then the nerves at various points in their bodies immediately hopped on the direct line to their brains to scream bloody **pain**. Also, it seemed that their muscles were no longer interested in keeping their bodies upright.

All three were down. It took exactly one second.

Thankfully, Zuko's situation hadn't deteriorated. Ty Lee was able to trot over to (Fire Lord Zuko!) him without any great haste, and smack his attackers in their chi points almost casually. Almost. Ty Lee was still kind of mad at them. These guys screamed, too.

Zuko took a moment to realize the fighting was over, and then another to focus his eyes on the girl who assisted him. "Ty Lee. Thanks. For saving me."

Even concussed, Ty Lee was pleased. She gently hugged Zuko. "Now aren't you glad you had a safety net?"

**END**


	54. Auras

_And with this, we close out Ty Luko Week. Technically, this was Saturday's prompt, but I decided to do some real **research** for this, instead of going off of a few vague references in the cartoon itself.  
_

* * *

**Ty Luko Week - Auras**

"You? Oh, you're easy. You're aura is fire."

"Huh."

"Disappointed?"

"No. Well, I'm... I mean, like you said, that's easy. Everyone in my family, going back generations, has been likened to Fire in some way. Poets make whole careers here about describing Fire, and using it as a metaphor for the people of our Nation. Saying that the Fire Lord's aura looks like Fire is... it's been done."

"Believe it or not, I have a good reason."

"I know! I didn't mean to insult you!"

"Not many people do, anymore. But they do it all the time. At least Mai has always been honest about it. She doesn't believe in auras, and thinks the whole thing is stupid. Just like a lot of people. But Mai says it to my face."

"I don't think you're stupid. And I know there's probably something to the auras you see."

"But nothing you can understand? Because Ty Lee is the only one silly enough?"

"I..."

"Don't worry, I'm fine. You just need to be educated. Okay?"

"I would be honored."

"Yay! But so formal! Just go, 'Yes, Ty Lee, that would be awesome and you're the cutest teacher I've ever had!' And smile when you say it."

"..."

"Well, when you were a little boy... Remember? You had that crush on me, and I didn't care because I didn't like boys yet and anyway you were always so serious and grumpy and I thought it was just the silliest thing and anyway Mai liked you and I didn't want to mess it up and Azula... Well, back then you were mostly red, with brown and black darkening you. Like a low-burning fire."

"Okay."

"The red showed that you were so serious because you felt kind of helpless and lost. You wanted to be a good son, and a good prince, but you had all these factors in your life causing you stress. Your mother was gone. Azula. Your shade also made me think you felt out of control of your life. Is that why you pushed to attend that war meeting? To take charge of your own growth?"

"..."

"The brown shades are what made you different from Azula. You were always a bit more straightforward, seeing things in straight lines. Also, there were tones of some self-doubt in there. You weren't confident in yourself, deep down. And then, of course, the black and darkness were all about the death and unbalance that surrounded you. Ultimately, it was good for your aura that you were banished."

"But not my face."

"......You weren't doing too well when you first came back, either. After we took Ba Sing Se, you kind of stopped being like fire. You were mostly black, all without light."

"Like Mai."

"No. Mai wasn't black at all. She was gray, because she was so super in-control, pinning her emotions to the wall like she did to people with her knives. You had a touch of gray in your aura, but mostly black. And some red. You've always had red, even now."

"Yeah, I was constantly on guard, angry at everything and wanting to lash out."

"I know. I got some lashing. But don't frown! I appreciated your honesty. It made us closer, didn't it?"

"I guess. Did I ever apologize for that?"

"Not formally. But you're _more_ than made up for it."

"Uh, yeah, I guess. I did get better, right?"

"Oh, definitely. When you became Fire Lord, you were _gold_. Like the brightest, sunniest day. I could have stared at you forever. For the first time in your life, your smile energized the people around you."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah. Gold is integrity and spiritual peace. Picture your soul flying free over the shining Spirit World. That's gold."

"I did feel that way."

"See? You still had a slight red outline, but mostly gold, with highlights of yellow and orange. Kind of a mix of positive thinking like a smart kid, and sensual emotion. Especially when Mai was around."

"Well..."

"Funny how Mai hates orange, but you two glowed that color around each other? Maybe that's why she hated it. She couldn't come to terms with her own sensuality."

"That almost sounded smart."

"I know, right? I don't get why people think I'm stupid. Anyway, you're still mostly those colors now, flame like the sun, but the orange has gotten stronger. But as you've grown older, matured, really settled in? I see flashes of pink now."

"That sounds... girly."

"It is. It's about feminine influence, really taking care of yourself. You also compromise more, trying to be nice and happy for other people. It's cute."

"Sounds a lot like you."

"Yay, you're getting it!"

"And I wonder if my... pinkness... has anything to do with all the time we've been spending together?"

"Just the time?"

"You tell me."

"..."

"..."

"I've become a bit more purple, since we got together."

"Is that good?"

"Mmmmmm, hmmmmmm."

"What does that mean?"

"Oh, you'll figure it out, someday. You'll have a lot of time to think about it."

"I'm glad we found each other, Ty."

"I already know that, Zuko. I'm smart that way."

**END**


	55. Seeking the Why

_This drabble started as a single line of spoken dialogue. Can you guess which one?_

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* * *

  
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**Seeking the Why**

Despite himself, he felt nervous. Really, he shouldn't. At least, not for his current reasons. Certainly, it would be natural to feel a bit self-concious around the Avatar, but he'd spent the last day in Avatar Aang's company and the monk had turned out to be a suprisingly personable and fun young man. Important people had never played games with him before, but Avatar Aang treated it like the most natural thing in the world. It had been... relaxing. Of course, many not-yet-teenage boys might feel some anxiety around a pretty foreign woman like the Waterbender Katara, but she had been quite nice, and her overly-familiar fussing made her seem like just another aunt or cousin. Of course, considering that this same Katara had kidnapped him from his parents' house and taken care of him for a night when he was a toddler, she was actually more involved in his life than most of his extended family.

Tom-Tom (he resolved once again to think of a more mature nickname) took a deep breath and entered the Fire Lord's palace behind the Avatar and his wife.

There was another very good reason for the uneasy feeling in his stomach. Tom-Tom would be meeting the Fire Lord, the supreme divinely inspired unquestionable may-his-flame-ever-burn ruler of the Fire Nation. Even the slightest breach of manners or protocol was legal grounds for death, or so the tutors said. However, Tom-Tom wasn't really worried. For one thing, being well-mannered was so ingrained into him that it may as well be genetic. More importantly, Fire Lord Zuko was by all accounts, including Avatar Aang's, a "swell guy". The various laws and pronouncements issued by the Fire Lord supported this view. To be honest, Tom-Tom considered the chance to meet his scarred Lord an honor and a treat.

No, it was really rather obvious. He was nervous about meeting _her_. The talk about the Fire Lord's wife was much less definitive.

Tom-Tom stared around the massive hallways as he followed the Airbender and the Waterbender to the inner residential wing. The palace was even more gaudily decorated than his own home, with every surface covered in layers and layers of burgundy fabrics. The gold detailing was often actual gold. And the portraits! They were four times as tall as a grown man! Tom-Tom noticed that three of the most recent portraits sported black frames instead of gold, but he didn't wish to betray his ignorance by asking the reason.

The reflexive deceit set his hands shaking again.

Rumors abounded about the Royal Consort's rise to power and the various ways she kept ahold of it. Many said that she was a thoroughly unpleasant person, and a significant minority accepted the accusations that she had committed war crimes, back during the conflict with the Earth Kingdom. Everyone wondered about her current loyalties, and everyone plus their brother speculated why the Fire Lord bothered with her at all.

Those people didn't know her. Their talk was useless to Tom-Tom.

He asked Avatar Aang and Katara, of course. Katara had actually been reluctant to answer, and just said that she respected his sister, that Zuko loved her, and that she was completely loyal to the Fire Lord. Tom-Tom wondered if Katara actually disliked her, but couldn't figure out a way to politely ask (although he gave himself a headache thinking about it). Avatar Aang was both more and less helpful. He was willing to answer any question factually, but outright stated that he knew Tom-Tom was trying to form an impression of his sister, and the only fair thing to do would be to wait until he met her. Father and Mother had always taught that advance information was the most effective weapon a human could possibly wield, but monks apparantly thought different.

The trio reached the end of the hall, and a suitably fancy (gold, of course) door opened.

Avatar Aang and Katara actually sprinted to the Fire Lord Zuko and hugged him, instead of bowing properly. The Fire Lord didn't seem at all displeased with this; he was smiling warmly, in a way that really softened the apperance of the large scar on his face. Tom-Tom wondered if he should be doing something less formal even as he sank to his knees and lowered his forehead to the floor. The Fire Lord's voice was scratchy-sounding, but friendly. "You don't have to bow in here, Tom-Tom. Stand up and let us get a good look at you."

The young boy complied, and as soon as he was up, his eyes locked on the room's other, silent occupant. She didn't say anything, didn't react. Her face was blank, and her eyes dull.

It was Mai. Sister.

To Tom-Tom's surprise, she reminded him vaguely of their mother. Something about her face, while not at all the same, still formed a vague echo that he recognized. He wondered if their voices would be similar. Tom-Tom bowed formally at the waist. "Thank you for allowing me to visit. Mother and Father send their greetings, and their hopes for your continued prosperity."

Mai didn't respond right away. "Please be sure to return the sentiment for me. Hello, brother." Her voice was not at all what Tom-Tom was expecting. Mother's voice was musical, exuberant. Mai's sounded like a soft growl. He risked a quick look at Avatar Aang, and got a confident smile in return.

"Maybe Tom-Tom and Mai would like to catch up," the Airbender offered.

Zuko nodded. "That's a good idea."

Mai arched an eyebrow. "Catch up? Don't we have to be familiar with each other in the first place to 'catch up?'"

Tom-Tom blinked. Was that a joke? The twisting feeling returned to his stomach.

The Fire Lord just looked at his wife, and something unsaid passed between them. Mai sighed, and turned back to her brother. "Okay, sure, let's go out to the balcony." She began moving, and Tom-Tom noticed that she glided even more gracefully than their mother. That was impressive, as Mother had turned posture and movement into a full-time trade.

The dark night sky was a heavy contrast to the decorative palace interior. It seemed to suit Mai more, though. Tom-Tom wondered if it suited himself, as well. Silence floated through the darkness for a while. Finally, Mai sighed and spoke. "So, you're attending the Earth Kingdom's new academy, right? You like it?"

Tom-Tom worked to keep his hands from shaking as he gripped the balcony's edge. "Do you hate me?" He said it politely, without accusation. He was good at being polite.

Mai looked down at him. "Interesting question. Do you think I hate you?"

Tom-Tom shrugged.

Her stare unfocused, aimed somewhere into the blackened vista. "You know, our parents never let me hold you."

The young boy considered that, and as suited his age and view of the world, found a simple solution. He stepped over to Mai and hugged her. His head only came up to her stomach, and his arms fit neatly around her waist.

Tom-Tom waited and hoped she would return the gesture.

Her hands rested on top of his head, and he could feel their lack of warmth even in the night air.

**END**


	56. Afraid of the Dark

_Yet another Avatar Spirit Drabble Contest entry. I'll hold my personal comments until after, so as not to ruin the surprise, and also get an unbiased reaction to the reason it was only a general runner-up. The criteria was as follows:_

**__****Bad Fanfiction cliches-** Oh you know the type, the Maru-Sues, the high school settings, the "Zuko captures Katara and they romance". From the high to the low, everyone has their pet cliche that drives them up a wall, now's your chance to use it.

**__****Emotion**- Not the piece itself, but me. Make me laugh, make me cry. It doesn't have to even be what people normally think of as an "emotion" making me think about or contemplate something works just as well. Just get a reaction.

**__****Creativity**- This doesn't just mean being creative about the cliche you use (though using one that I've never thought of before is worth bonus points) But also in how you do it. Yes you can do a parody of the cliche, and if it's funny you might win, but I'd prefer something else. Deconstruct it, play it straight and show what would really happen if Zuko captured Katara to use as bait for Aang. Or show how it can be done well. Whatever, surprise me.

**__****Logic** - This ones a bit odd and hard to describe (and hence why I'm putting it last.) But try to have the drabble makes sense. Don't have the Mary-Sue be crushed by a random boulder, have her sparkles blind Appa as he comes in for a landing, crushing her. Obviously you get a free pass on the initial cliche, but once you start it, weather it be serious or funny, don't have things just come out of nowhere for no reason.

* * *

**Afraid of the Dark**

Night has fallen.

You race to light the torches, giving no heed to restraint or safety. A thrust of your fist throws the comforting flames into the pan, and glorious light fills the room. For a moment, you feel safe, but only for that brief second. It's not enough to cower in here and depend on the light to keep it at bay; you must build a fortress of light to keep the creature far away. A wall of light, like the barriers that protected Ba Sing Se.

Yet, even the walls of Ba Sing Se eventually fell.

You move forward from room to room, lighting all the torches in each. You dread every step you take into the darkening temple. Though your eyes are open, darkness stands before you and comes closer with every step. It's not the featureless plane of shadow that unsettles you, but the things that may lurk within. With every breath, you feel your horror growing, that a shape may be forming from the night and approaching you.

Then the new torchlight chases the darkness away, for one more room.

Every time you face the darkness, it grows harder, despite the increasing amount of light filling the temple. You're tempted to turn around, relieve your eyes from the horrific possibilities, but the idea of not seeing what's hunting you is somehow even worse. Doubts begin to afflict you. Is it as vulnerable to the light as you believe? Or is it lurking behind you, its every horrible feature visible, amusement shining through its unearthly eyes at your false sense of security?

You've let your gaze linger on this room's torches too long. After-images in the shape of flames- ior is that a face?/i- flicker in the darkness. You hurry.

At last, the final room is lit. The whole temple is filled with saving light. You breathe a sigh of profound relief, the weight of fear falling from your back and shoulders. You look out the window, across the courtyard, and draw comfort form the sight of every window in the temple glowing in contrast with the black night sky.

One of the windows goes dark.

Your skin crawls, and your ears prickle in some kind of instinctive alertness. Could that just be an accident? A gust of wind through an unsecured portal?

The next window in line goes dark.

Then the next.

Then the _next_.

_Then the next_.

It's drawing closer.

You run. Your courage has run out, and the only reason you don't scream as you flee is that you can't summon the breath. The darkness approaches, gliding smoothly through each of the temple's rooms. It follows you. You throw fireballs as you pass through each of the chambers you had visited before, burning anything and everything in hope that enough light will finally halt the menace.

Your hope is in vain. Each room darkens with the same ease.

At last, you arrive in the final lit chamber, a small empty space where citizens once came to pray to Agni. You find that your faith has utterly deserted you. You glance around desperately, but you can find nothing to ease your fear. You open a door, but find only blanket shadow. Just as summon the will to raise your hands and attempt some Firebending, a pale face flickers into view, eyes locked on yours, and you lose the breath that would have fueled your fire in a scream. You shut the door in a panic. The door on the opposite side of the room, where you entered from, is still closed, but the light that leaked through the crack at the bottom slowly fades into nothing. You are in the last lit room of the whole temple.

You scramble next to the large torch-pans, close enough that the heat of the flames is painful, even for a Firebender. The far door creaks open, but nothing is visible, only shadow. You pant, waiting. Nothing happens.

Then the light moves.

You've never seen anything like it before. You can't even figure out what you're seeing. The light in the room somehow becomes less substantial, even though the fires are not at all diminished. Your eyes can see less and less detail; the wooden planks of the floor become a single surface, and the glossy seal becomes dull and opaque. At last, the room is almost completely obscured in shadow, the dancing flames alone standing as useless beacons.

Then you feel a wave of cold. You catch a glimpse of the white face again, staring at you, before the flames go out and darkness reigns.

You panic. You scream, you scramble, you run. You feel something hard hit against your head, then give way and shatter, and realize you've thrown yourself out the window and into the courtyard. You don't even feel the bleeding cuts that must have been scratched into your skin. You crawl across the stone ground, and look up at the one source of light left. The moon's pale glow is your one hope.

You hear footsteps on the ground behind you.

You turn, and find the pale face just inches from your own. Its eyes flicker briefly like torchlight, and you quickly raise your hands to summon your inner fire.

Too slow.

Its hands grab your wrists. Inhuman strength locks your limbs into place. You are pushed down to the ground, your knees popping as they hinge in ways they weren't designed for. The whole time, your gaze is fixed on the face in front of you, that of a pale young woman, wearing shadow the way a courtesan would wear makeup. Her expression is so animalistic, the shadows so disfiguring, that you recognize the creature as being utterly inhuman.

She pins you, and the wave of cold tickles you again. It seeps into your muscles, then bones, and you catch the glimpse of frost growing across your whitening skin, barely visible in the waning moonlight.

You are losing your bodyheat. The Shadowbender is feeding.

As the final darkness overtakes you, you struggle to remember the feel of having Fire at your beck and call.

You fail.

**END**

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_So, basically, the reason this story lost was the 2nd-person perspective. It was said to have killed the sense of immersion in the same viscous and bloody manner as a pack of half-starved velociraptors. Feel free to explain if you agree or not. I admit, I chose it as a gimmick because I doubted my own ability make my readers feel fear._

_Also, something interesting to note- I've been sitting on this idea for implementing "Shadowbenders" as reversed Firebenders for a while now. I have a plot outline for a horror story sitting on my hard-drive, that I may eventually actually write someday in a few years._


	57. De Cipher

_Another week, another entry for Avatar Spirit's drabble contest. I apologize for the general lack of updates and crazy ideas, but I'm still working on a (serious, not comedic) multi-chapter fic that's taking a lot of effort. Accurate yet exciting martial arts combat description is **hard**. Anyway, here's the criteria for this piece:_

******Letters**

******A Letter** must be in the drabble. It can be in the form of an actual letter that the character (and therefore us) reads or it can be mentioned in some other way. Either way it must be central to the plot. It could be a letter from the past, a report being sent, a love letter, pretty much anything.

******Emotion.** The characters react to said letter in some way. Let's really feel it with them.

******An Animal.** Mention some kind of animal. Just for clockworkchaos. Turkens are optional but any animal will do.

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**De Cipher**

Fire Lord Zuko was pacing in his private office when Mai found him. With the same coldness as a palace servant but none of the ingratiating tone, she spoke. "Aang and Katara have just landed. I'm having them brought here right away."

Zuko nodded. "Hopefully, they'll be able to solve this mystery. Lives may depend on it." Mai didn't react. She already knew that.

The Avatar and the Master Waterbender were ushered into the room several minutes. As usual, they were grinning at the prospect of reuniting with friends, but one look at the expression on the Fire Lord's scarred face killed their mood. Aang spoke first. "What's wrong?"

Zuko gestured, and Mai produced a paper from her sleeves. She handed it to Katara as the Fire Lord explained. "A few days ago, I received this letter from Sokka. It came by a very swift messenger hawk, and was addressed directly to me." For the first time, his eyes rose to meet the gaze of his guests. "He usually doesn't bother putting my name on it directly, since Mai checks them all first."

"Actually," Mai herself interjected, "that's not exactly accurate. Suki writes all Sokka's letters for him. I recognize her handwriting." The dour woman's mouth moved into a vague smirk. "I think she knows they'll get a quicker response if she lets me handle things."

Zuko nodded. "But then we get this note. The problem is that it's written in some kind of code, and I can't decipher it." Katara and Aang peered down at the letter. "I don't recognize any of those characters, and all of the substitution decryptions my military intelligence tried didn't produce anything. I thought it might be something having to do with the White Lotus, so I actually brought Master Piandao over to look at it, and he couldn't make anything of it, either." The Fire Lord sighed, and began pacing again. "It has to be very important, if Sokka wanted it in my hands so quickly, but couldn't trust that it wouldn't be intercepted. Who knows what kind of secrets that code is hiding from enemy eyes."

Aang gave up trying to decrypt the letter with the power of his gaze. "You think it has to do with the upcoming diplomatic summit?"

"It must. Otherwise, Sokka will be here in a few days; he could just tell me whatever it is then." Zuko shrugged. "Time is running out. I've increased security for the whole event as much as I can without committing our entire national defense force, but it would be a lot better if we could focus on whatever the problem is."

Aang nodded. "Channel our energy into one precise blow against the threat."

"Exactly. So, I was hoping you two could help me with this, maybe recognize the code as something Water Tribe."

"Sorry," Aang sighed. "It looks like nothing to me."

"Wait..." Katara muttered. Every eye in the room flashed to focus on her. "I think..." She rotated the letter so that she could read it sideways. "This isn't... this... oh, for goodness' sake."

"What?!" Zuko ran over to her.

Katara slapped her forehead and casually tossed the letter to the Fire Lord. "This isn't a code. It's just his horrible handwriting. He wanted you to make sure the receiving party will have those spicy turken wings he discovered the last time he was in the Fire Nation. He said that he couldn't trust Mai to do it, because she claims that his eating habits disgust her, and that if you're his buddy you'll do your best to feed him properly."

It was a long moment before Zuko could bring himself to react. He squinted at the letter, turned it sideways, turned it sideways again, and then held it up to the brightest light. "Are you sure?"

"I'm an expert on my brother's horrible handwriting. Trust me."

No one was quite sure what to say or do. Finally, Mai got up and headed for the door. "I guess I'll let the general know he can decrease security back to its original level."

"Are you going to tell the kitchen about the turken wings?" Aang called after her.

Mai stopped, and turned to throw the Avatar wink. "I love hot wings. They were already on the menu."

Zuko groaned and flopped down into the nearest chair. He felt fatigued for the whole rest of the day.

**END**


	58. Winter Solstice at the South Pole

_So, I should probably get this next piece up before Epiphany (Little Christmas) officially ends the holiday season. In Avatar Spirit's recent Secret Santa Exchange, my recipient was ReturnableMemory, who liked canon couples and the characters of Sokka, Toph, Iroh, and Zuko. While I know there are people out there who would like any drabble I wrote with those four characters, I wanted to something vaguely holiday-themed, and something a little more special than the drabbles I write all the time._

That, of course, meant it was time for more **poetry**!

_Stop groaning.  
_

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**  
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**Winter Solstice at the South Pole**

In the bleak land of ice, down at the Southern Pole,  
The Sun is now long fled, while night dims land and soul.  
Yet the Southern Water Tribe, with its people strong,  
Readies to greet the Solstice with cheer, fun, and song.

Though Solstice is a day of cold and endless night,  
Celebrations and feasting keep all their hopes bright.  
After dining they trade gifts, both useful and not.  
Having special guests take part boosts the fun a lot!

Avatar Aang made fruit pies for the entire Tribe.  
Katara got a scroll by an Airbender Scribe-  
A dramatic retelling of her people's past.  
She gave him a headdress to warm his bare head fast.

Suki brought the dinner, fish from Kyoshi Isle.  
For Sokka, a blue dress, in her Warriors' style.  
Sokka pretended to not like the gag at all,  
But he glowed as he gave her an artistic scrawl.

Zuko was quite clueless, so he brought gifts of gold,  
And a fur cape for Mai, protection from the cold.  
Mai played the pipa lute, the first time since a child.  
As a special gift for Zuko, she warmly smiled.

Young Toph and Old Iroh chose to work together.  
They stopped at each port as they sailed towards cold weather.  
They had fun with their searching, haggling, and shopping.  
The toys, jewels, and clothes had the whole Tribe a'hopping.

Chief Hakoda was quite pleased by the whole group's cheer.  
For the first Solstice in years, his Tribe knew no fear.  
The love and contentment was his favorite gift.  
Outside, towards one shining star, his gaze he did lift.

**END**


	59. It's Called Denial, Honey

_The other day, I offered to write a drabble for the first crack-pairing requested of me. I don't know if my Mai-centric fame had any bearing on this, but I'm not complaining.  
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**It's Called "Denial," Honey**

Mai hated Katara.

It didn't matter that the war was over. Really, Mai had never gotten terribly emotional about the century of fighting, or any of the people who took part in it, except for a few she knew personally. She certainly didn't blame Katara for fighting in the war, either. The South Pole sounded like the most boring place on the entire planet, and Mai would have signed up with the first terrorist recruiter who came calling in order to get out of there. Yeah, Katara had once kidnapped Tom-Tom as part of all the conflict, but that had given Mai something to do while in Omashu, so no hard feelings.

No, Mai's hate for Katara was entirely personal. Katara cared about things. Katara wore her every emotion in plain sight, and actually used them to affect other people in ways that weren't intentionally manipulative. Katara smiled when she was happy and bawled like a baby when she was sad, and Katara was perfectly okay with that. Moreover, Katara was driven by her emotions, setting out to change the world, if necessary, in order to appease her sense of justice. When Katara was angry and feeling slighted, whole nations trembled.

Drama queen.

Katara was also a bender. Granted, that wasn't entirely her own fault, but Mai still hated her for it. (Who said life was fair?) Benders all thought they had some kind of advantage over more normal folk, even if they didn't make a big deal about it, and Mai hated being thought of as inferior more than anything else. Her own stoicism hid a disdainful sense of superiority for everyone around her, and anything that challenged that was like a personal attack. Mai took extra pleasure in outfighting Benders, and Katara's expressive eyes made hurting the girl all the more enjoyable.

Knives were fun.

The worst, though, was that everyone liked Katara. Everyone. Even people who didn't really know her. Something about her just made people smile, and that offended Mai. Mai hated smiling. Mai hated things that caused people to smile. Mai hated that she had one and only one reason to smile; Zuko was that reason, and Katara made him smile, too. Mai wanted to knock the smiles off of everyone in the room whenever Katara came to visit, and could have, too, without even using half of her knives. Having to hold back for Zuko's sake was another reason to hate Katara.

That was why Mai hated Katara.

No, not really.

Mai hated Katara because she wanted to be Katara.

Mai loved Katara.

Ugh.

**END**


	60. Tavern Song

_Ho! Been a while. I'm still working on my multi-chapter fic, and have it almost half completed. However, I've been forgetting to update this series with more Avatar Spirit Drabble contest entries. This one was for the following criteria:_

_**Song**_  
_**Lyrics - the lyrics to said song must be in there. Bonus points for original lyrics.**_  
_**Time Frame – I'd like for it to be in the normal Avatar Universe, but before, after or during the show doesn't matter. Just no AUs.**_

* * *

**Tavern Song**

Sokka enjoyed this kind of work. He was sitting in a busy tavern on the Western coast of the Earth Kingdom, in one of those port towns where the shopping was world-class and taxes non-existent. He had a sweet drink made from _fruit_ (something Water Tribe members all enjoyed), a hot bowl of soup containing tender shellfish meat, and a beautiful girl leaning against him. Plus, he was in town hunting pirates!

What wasn't to love?

Suki wasn't enjoying herself as much, having to stay in the shadows and keep her hood up. It was her choice, though. She was the one who wanted to wear the full Kyoshi Warrior regalia. Sokka tried to tell her that tonight was reconnaissance, hitting all the instances of the local nightlife and listening for pirate accents. (Odd that pirates talked differently from everyone else, but it made Sokka's work easier.) Hopefully, there wouldn't be any fighting at all. Suki, however, talked about the honor of Kyoshi Warriors and what the makeup and dress meant and how in case they had to fight the reputation of her homeland might very well save their lives, and all kinds of other stuff that meant Sokka gave up the argument and Suki had to wear a disguising cloak.

Ah well, her choice. Sokka dug happily into his soup and kept an ear open for the surrounding conversation. A voice called out above the din, "Hey, let's have us a song!" There was a gruff shout of agreement from the gathered men, and one produced a simple accordion. "What tune do we be wanting?" A few voices ventured suggestions, but no one backed them. A man sitting on the opposite side of the tavern from Sokka shouted something that sounded like, "Girls Painted White," and the crowd laughed and offered affirmations.

The man with the accordion smiled broadly and began playing. Sokka recognized the basic music as a rowdy song about a bunch of people on a cruise who became shipwrecked on an island for an indefinite period of time. The song itself was so famous that the tune was used for all manner of less popular chants, and was a favorite for improvised sessions. Sokka hoped this would be a funny song.

Then the singing started, and his stomach lurched.

_"In the waters where great monsters swim even brave men fear to go,_  
_But hidden on Kyoshi are treasures to which I'd row!_  
_The girls there are all enchantresses who worship the Avatars,_  
_Immortal pretties painted white from head to toe to arse!"_

Sokka's eyes darted to the girl at his side. Suki looked like a good friend had just punched her in the gut. As the first verse ended, her face colored so deeply that the blush shone through her facepaint. "We can leave," Sokka whispered to her, but she didn't reply. The second verse rang out, louder than the first, with laughter coming from every corner.

_"Finer beauties you will never touch if you drop coin far and wide,_  
_And men down on Kyoshi Isle don't have to pay for rides!_  
_Warriors the girls claim to be but they dress in green silk gowns._  
_And as they dash around their lands, they smile and laugh like clowns!"_

Sokka himself blushed slightly at the first lines, and then felt his face become a positive inferno at the last two. He had once seriously believed something very similar, and the reminder was not a pleasant one, not in this context. He looked at Suki again. She was biting her lip, but her expression was no longer wounded. Her eyes were hard, and she had gone very still. She tugged her cloak's hood down further over her face as the third verse started.

_"Upon their hips hang katana blades, the steel so curved and sharp,_  
_But unsheathed only in kitchens to fillet and serve the carp!_  
_When playing with their island's men they unfold fans made of gold,_  
_Held to cover naughty sights as they dance nude in the cold!"_

At the word, "naughty," Suki stood up. She looked down at Sokka and spoke soft enough that only he would hear. "I think the reconnaissance is done for the night. We're not going to learn anything more here." Sokka nodded and got up to leave with her, but to his surprise, she walked not towards the door, but into the center of the room.

Realizing what was about to happen, the Water Tribe man beat a hasty retreat. The next verse had already started, going into detailed speculation as to why Kyoshi Warriors wore skirts into battle, when Suki threw off her cloak and drew her sword. The katana didn't look very much like a fish knife in her hands.

The singing died.

Suki smirked. "Clowns, huh?"

As she broke into motion, Sokka dashed through the door and closed it behind him.

Outside, the air was warm and the night was clear. Sokka leaned against the tavern and gazed up at the stars. From within the building, the sounds of crashes, thuds, and screams wafted out into the darkness. There was almost a kind of beat to the noise. He hummed along, and then quietly warbled a final verse.

_"I would never sing with disrespect of women of any kind,_  
_I'm not a jerk or misogynist, however unrefined."_

******END**


	61. Those Who Can't Do, Teach

_I'm running out of ways to say, "Hey peeps, it's time for another drabble contest story!" And yes, I count saying that I'm running out of ways to be a way, so it's one less. ;) The criteria this time was a little odd. One of the members of Avatar Spirit Dot Net created the concept of a "Balkanized" Avatar verse, where a few changes to the makeup of the world spiraled into a completely different situation when Aang is let out of his iceburg- the entire world is at war, the countries divided into squabbling factions, with conquest and the betterment of one's own team the only morality. Here were the general guidelines:_

_**Criteria**_

_**Expansion - Expand the universe, give me something new. Develop a character or faction or situation or give a new twist on one I've already done.**_  
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_**Logic - This is an alternate timeline, not universe. I don't mind characters act different (in fact having them exactly the same would be just as bad), but give some explanation why they are the way they are, especially if it's extremely different. If your doing a faction piece, why are they as they are. I don't need a 200 page explanation, just a few sentances can be enough if done right.**_  
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_**Themes - Canon's loose, but keep the overall themes for the universe. For a quick summary**_  
_**1. There is no overall main villain faction, everybody wrong in there own way.**_  
_**2. People want peace but don't even think it's possible, or understand it. (peace means "enemies have been crushed" to most people)**_  
_**3. There are no perfect heroes, even the best of them are season one zukoish. Trying to be good, but don't really know what is good.**_  
_** 3b Except Aang.**_

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**Those Who Can't Do, Teach**

Avatar Aang looked down and saw a man surrounded by the dead.

A shift of weight, a rustle from his glider, and a rush of wind later, Aang stood in front of the man. There had to be at least a dozen corpses around. Beneath the blood, their uniforms looked green. The man himself wore the garb of one of the Fire Nation's Bending-less soldiers, but all the red had been replaced by black. Perhaps it was a sign of some special rank? That would be helpful. Aang did his best to ignore the macabre scene around him; he was getting good at it. "I'm the Avatar. I need to speak to whoever is in command."

The man bowed formally, his hands arranged in a fist-to-palm manner that Aang had never seen before. "I am honored to meet you. I am Piandao."

Aang waited.

Piandao blinked. "I'm sorry; I was giving you a chance to react. It has been a while since my name has gone unrecognized." His mouth twitched slightly. "I am a mercenary, currently employed by General Sou in support of his latest mission. I will take you directly to him."

"Great! Lead the way."

Piandao didn't move. "I need you to surrender your staff to me, and allow yourself to be bound."

"What?" Aang was suddenly quite aware of the bodies littering the ground.

"I am placing you under arrest. The Fire Nation has offered a bounty. I am going to collect it." The armored warrior met Aang's accusing eyes, and they were not unkind. "It will go better for you if you don't resist."

Aang mapped it out in his head. He could fight back from three different starting points- a staff strike, Bending palm attacks, or directly blowing a gust at the mercenary. From there, he could transition all three into an attack at his opponent's feet, in case he was still standing. Such a sudden takedown would instill a sense of caution in the mercenary, and Aang could politely restate his request to be taken to General Sou as a guest. The man would accept, intimidated by Aang's speed, skill, and mercy.

The Avatar suddenly realized that he had the blade of a sword pointed at his throat; it didn't waver in the air at all. He looked up at Piandao, who was holding the weapon with his arm extended, waiting patiently for Aang's surrender. The mercenary had worn his weapon so naturally, Aang hadn't even noticed it. He still couldn't recollect any sign of it being grasped or drawn.

Aang smiled sheepishly and dropped his staff.

*

It wasn't an ideal situation, but it more or less got Aang what he wanted. Granted, he was chained up in a guarded tent in the middle of a Fire Nation army camp, but he was still getting a chance to speak to General Sou. Piandao stood by the entrance, his sheathed sword in hand, as the commanding officer entered.

Sou paused to glare at Piandao. The mercenary bowed his head and spoke politely. "I have not been paid for him yet."

The elder man didn't comment, instead turning his attention back to Aang. "And so the Avatar is delivered to my dominion. It seems that Agni truly does reward His pure-hearted followers."

"I surrendered so that you would hear me out. I have a warning for you."

The general nodded permission.

Drawing a long breath, the Avatar looked Sou in the eyes and spoke. "I just came from the Hu Xin provinces. The Earth Kingdom has completely reconquered them. If you had any military forces there, they're gone. But the colonists... they've been taken prisoner." He paused, remembering what he had seen, what he had heard, risking his life to sneak in to the people. "Most of them who could walk, anyway. The Earthbenders marched them to their new fort; those engineers, the _Ba Sing Shi Jun_, built it with Earthbending over what looked like one of your supply depots. It seems like a smaller group, and I think they're cut off from the main supply lines, so they're trying to move out all the material using the colonists as human shields."

Sou looked concerned for the first time. Piandao had no reaction.

Aang put everything he had into his gaze, and turned it on the old general. "If you attack that fort, your people will die."

Sou turned away, his gaze unfocused. His lips moved soundlessly as he stroked his beard. After several moments, he turned back to Aang. "What is your suggestion?"

Aang sighed as the stress left his body. "I think I can get everyone out, but I need your help. I'll deal with the Earthbenders and keep them busy, while a team of your people gets the civilians out. They can meet up with your main army outside the fort, and get away. The Earthbenders have prepared the terrain, but not for very far. Like I said, it seems to be a smaller crew."

Sou stroked his beard again. "Whatever option we use, I'll need precise information on the general area, and the fort especially. Have they begun moving anything out?"

Aang tried to shrug, but the heavy chains wrapped around him made the movement painful. "I don't think so. They were still getting it ready for moving when I left. I think they're also building a tunnel for it all."

"Then we don't have much time. Piandao, would you be so kind as to bring some paper and brush for the prisoner? And unbind one of his hands? I don't think he'll be trying to escape, not as long as we're working together."

The swordsman was still for a moment, and then complied. Aang drew his best idea of what he had seen, aided by General Sou's questions, and explained what couldn't be represented on paper. Sou was quite pleased with the results. "Excellent. You have been a great aid to the Fire Nation, Avatar Aang.

"From everything you've given me, it seems they haven't moved the blasting jelly reserves. A sustained barrage at that part of the fort should set it off and bring the whole fort down."

Aang didn't process what he heard for a few seconds. The roaring of his blood echoed in his ears. "But... the colonists..."

"It's a terrible loss, of course, but there would have been casualties among them anyway. This way, we can take out a skilled team of the Impenetrable Stone Corps with minimal cost to my forces. The Earthbenders in the fort aren't the only ones running on less than optimal numbers." Sou's face never lost its passive blankness. "Piandao, add some extra chains, and also gag his mouth."

Aang didn't have the heart to resist. Piandao was as gentle as he could be, but in the end, the weight of the chains was too heavy for Aang to even stand up. Sou nodded in approval, and spoke one last time before leaving with his mercenary. "I am truly sorry, Avatar, but this is how war is fought. On all sides. It was the Earth Kingdom who involved the colonists. I'm fighting for my Nation's greater benefit. Perhaps if you ally with the Fire Lord, he can arrange to make use of you away from dark business such as this."

*

Later that day, Aang heard the grind of siege catapults rolling past the camp. He didn't sleep all night. The next morning was quiet, but early in the afternoon, he heard a faint crack coming from a great distance, sounding not unlike a bolt of lightning striking on the horizon. After the sun had set, the sound of grinding wheels returned, along with the pleased chatter of men.

Aang cried silently all night. He sobbed for the dead colonists. He sobbed for Fire Nation soldiers who killed them. He sobbed for the Earthbenders who made such a terrible mistake.

Mostly, he cried for himself. He cried for himself because he knew, without a doubt, that if he had access to his full depth of Avatar power, he would have wiped them all from existence, and felt justified in doing so.

*

Piandao returned to the tent at dawn. "I felt I should bid you farewell. There is no more immediate work here, and I have been paid for my efforts."

Aang didn't look up at him. "Were you there?"

The mercenary didn't even frown. "I was."

Aang let the silence hang.

For some reason, Piandao continued talking. "I wasn't with the catapults, though. I was closer to the fortress when it came down." He looked down at Aang. "The explosion knocked me, and everyone with me, off our feet."

"Everyone?"

"A company of swordsman I asked to help me. And a group of Fire Nation colonists."

Aang's eyes flew up. "Then...?"

"We didn't save them all. Not nearly. The swordsmen were the _San Mei Shi_, Triple-Plated Gentlemen, an elite group I was paid to assemble and train some years ago. I explained the situation, and asked for their unofficial help. We infiltrated the fortress, liberated one of the stone barracks used to contain the hostages, and led them out just in time. I couldn't tell you how many there were, somewhere from twenty to fifty, perhaps."

Aang felt new tears in his eyes, and this time he couldn't even say why.

Piandao frowned. "...I'm sorry I couldn't save more. I tried... I think I tried my best."

Aang nodded. "You tried. You risked your life and your money to save people."

"I also killed." His voice grew harder. "There were sentries to deal with. It had to been done silently, if we were to succeed. Even an effort this noble requires some compromises. Does that still make it better than Sou's methods?"

"..."

"I would appreciate an answer. I... am interested in your opinion."

Aang's voice was low. "All I can see is that you were interested in saving people. Not grabbing land, not killing people who might someday be your enemy, not oppressing people who don't want your rule. Maybe that makes me the blindest person in this whole world right now, but... you tried to do the right thing."

Piandao nodded. "An interesting perspective. Compelling, too, in a way. I'll continue to think about it." He bowed formally to the Avatar. "I hope we meet again."

That night, Aang stood up again and flew away.

**END**

_One last note- the "San Mei Shi" are a throwaway reference to a concept I'm working with in my multi-chapter Piandao fic. I may rename them, but the "Triple-Plated Gentlmen" (referring to the construction of a jian sword) is growing on me._


	62. The Alliance

_It's Jetaru Week, as hosted by deviantArt's WithinOurTemptation. I find Jet to be an interesting character to write, as he's definitely a bad sort of guy, but I have to keep a path open going both in and out of the badness. Haru is just Haru._

* * *

**The Alliance**

Part 1 - Treehouse

Haru was homeless until Jet brought him back to his treehouse.

Granted, "treehouse" failed to describe the scale and sophistication of the place. When Jet had first talked about it, Haru was skeptical. How could a bunch of kids and one bossy teenager put together a real shelter so high off the ground, hidden from the Fire Nation's searches? They must have managed it somehow, though. The various platforms, all completely stable, were joined by strong bridges and a chaotically functional network of swinging ropes. A massive amount of supplies could be hidden away in various shelters, protected from both sight and the elements. And everyone, no matter how young or important to the fighting effort, had his or her own little hut. The base had everything Haru could have wanted in a rebel hideout.

Except his parents.

Jet was the next best thing, though.

Being the second oldest kid in the group, Haru was in a unique position to truly appreciate Jet's leadership skills. He had a great charisma to him; if there weren't a war, he would have made a fantastic merchant, as he could sell pretty much anything to anyone. It wasn't just that he was smart, able to logically justify pretty much anything he wanted, or that he had one of those trick memories that could keep track of both the names of everyone he met and also their special skills. Those were certainly tools of a great leader, but not the most important thing. The key to Jet's success was the he _believed_. It was that extra emphasis to his wants and visions that carried into his demeanor and inspired everyone around him. It made the Freedom Fighters want to do anything for Jet.

It reminded Haru of his father and Katara.

Perhaps that's why he was never quite entirely comfortable with Jet.

Katara was water, flowing wherever she could reach to bring life to people. Dad was Earth, strong in body and providing a solid foundation for the beliefs of everyone around him. (All right, perhaps all that was overly poetic, but Haru really missed both of them a lot.) Jet, though, lived in a treehouse. He wasn't grounded. He didn't identify with an element. If he had an icon, it was his blades, stained red with the blood of the Fire Nation.

At first, Jet had Haru do simple things, like participate in supply raids. That was fine with Haru; he would fight with the others against the Fire Nation's soldiers, harassing those who would terrorize the Earth Kingdom, and winning needed supplies for the Freedom Fighters and anyone they could help. Then, there were the less noble missions, keeping Fire Nation colonists out of the forest, even if they weren't military, or even warriors. Haru understood the logic of it, that even if their treehouse home was hidden, the best way to keep it secret was to keep it isolated. Haru always did what he could to avoid really hurting those people, and he often succeeded, bending the paths into a maze that led intruders away. Sometimes, he failed, and had to fight.

Perhaps those memories were what kept him up at night.

Plus, he had never gotten used to sleeping off the ground in a treehouse.

Rewards came with these duties. Jet was much more open to his most dependable soldiers, who seemed to double as his closest friends. It sometimes helped when Jet admitted that he was bothered by some of the things the Freedom Fighters had to do, and when he talked about his few memories of his parents and childhood home. Haru would in turn talk about his father's Earthbending lessons, and things seemed okay for a little while. Jet would become human for a little while, a boy just like Haru who was trying to get by in a world where hitting first was the only way to survive. It was a lifestyle reflected throughout nature, across the entire forest. It was in the leaves that hid them and the branches that held them all up.

Then the _special_ missions would ruin all that sentiment.

Haru missed sleeping on the ground.

.

Part 2 - Rejection

Despite all the warning signs, Jet was truly surprised when Haru left.

The Earthbender hadn't told anyone, or left a note, or anything. He simply wasn't around, then couldn't be found, and then became truly gone, all without any extra effort on Haru's part. To be honest, Jet was a little hurt by that. As the only Freedom Fighter near Jet's age, Haru had become the closest to him. He could talk to Haru, even though their lives had been almost completely different. (Jet felt that the biggest differences were that Haru's parents still lived, somewhere, and that the Earthbender actually liked Katara's preaching.) Also, Haru was an appreciative audience. The others were too in awe of Jet, too spellbound by his fantastic (honest assessment!) leadership skills. Haru, though, could see what was going on, and be properly impressed.

It was nice to be understood.

Plus, Haru's _defection_ represented a major loss. The most obvious was, of course, Haru's Earthbending. Warriors were fine, but Benders had a level of power that couldn't be equaled by anything but machinery (creepy Fire Nation stuff), and a versatility that Jet found limitless. There wasn't any problem Jet's imagination couldn't solve with a Bender working for him. The Freedom Fighters, however, had made do without Benders for years, and could do so again. The thing that Jet really regretted was how much _time and energy_ he had put into Haru's development.

Haru wasn't like the others. He wasn't blinded by a need for revenge, to strike the Fire Nation until his own hurts were lost in the haze of pain. He was old enough to remember his father's lessons, and his mother's gentleness. Haru had trouble doing what was necessary.

So Jet had helped.

He had made unraveling Haru's personality a pet project. Haru had to be educated _properly_, not with a speech, but with a steady insinuation about the _rightness_ of their cause. Jet considered himself good at giving speeches, but he truly felt that he reached new heights of subtlety and conviction in his talks with Haru. It had hurt a little, throwing in so many uncomfortable truths about himself, but anything less would have failed, and the gains would be worth it.

Haru had led him on.

He had listened to Jet, pretended to be Jet's friend, and even helped his Freedom Fighters with their greatest victory when they destroyed that village with an engineered mudslide. But he had been their enemy all along. As everyone was celebrating the victory and destruction of so many Fire Nation colonists, Haru had slunk away and left them all.

Jet vowed that if he ever saw Haru again, he would kill the Earthbender.

Over time, the other Freedom Fighters noticed that Jet had lost his drive, that he couldn't work up the same enthusiasm or charisma. Jet iknew/i that they knew, but couldn't figure out what to do about it. He wished he could talk to someone about the problem, someone so like him, who would truly listen.

Since they had noticed the warning signs, Jet figured it would be all right for his Freedom Fighters. They would wake up one day, and their leader wouldn't be around, and then wouldn't be found, and then would be gone. But they would understand.

He had his own understanding to find.

Jet set off to find his Earthbender.

**END**


	63. Going on Holiday

_Here's another losing drabble contest entry. Yes, that is Pratchett influence you detect. The criteria was:_

**_The Search for the Avatar_****_: Tell me a story, set in the century when Aang was frozen, of someone(s) searching for the Avatar. We know that Zuko wasn't the first prince of the Fire Nation to hunt for Aang, but what about other people? Sozin? What about people outside the Fire Nation? The White Lotus? Bumi? Gyatso? The last, desperate Air Nomad survivors? Pathik? The Dai Li? Mad prophets? Ordinary people? In a hundred years there have to be a few good stories about people searching for -- but never finding -- the dead/missing/cowardly/newly reincarnated Avatar._**

**_1. Timeline: All stories must take place AFTER Aang has run away from the Southern Air Temple but BEFORE he's woken up by Katara._**  
**_2. Hold the Aang, Please: While these drabbles will be *about* Aang/the Avatar, I would like them not to *star* Aang. _**  
**_3. Grammar and Spelling_**

_Also, before we begin, I just want to invite readers to go ahead and comment on any of the "Ember Island Lighthouse" stories, even if it's to criticize them. I like hearing reactions to my writing, regardless of the nature. Reviews have been very slow lately, but there's indications that people are still reading. Even if you want to say, "This is boring stuff with nothing to make it stand out," I still would like to hear from you.  
_

_

* * *

  
_

**Going on Holiday**

Teenage girls were a rare sight on the busy dawn-soaked docks, especially swathed in orange robes, never mind the incongruous and haphazard crimson head-wraps.

The shorter of the two looked positively thrilled, spinning her gaze out at the shifty shops, dirty denizens, and broad boats. Her long brown hair spilled out from the back of her headscarf, and she clutched a tall walking stick with an intensity that suggested either a cool awareness of its presence in her hand or a very stressed forgetfulness for its existence.

The taller one, with only a few odd locks of her identically colored hair escaping its wrap, met every single one of the crowd's stares and invited them to fight with nothing more than eerie gray eyes and a hard scowl; this was obviously a person who didn't bother with trivial details like age, size, weight, training, and access to weapons when deciding to physically defend her honor (or whatever else she felt may have been challenged, such as taste in headwear). Despite her obvious disadvantages, the sailors and dockworkers let their own glances slide away from her, lest they provoke the thin girl unnecessarily.

No point in taking chances while in the Fire Nation, after all. Especially this early in the morning.

When it was clear that there wouldn't be any immediate interference, the taller one spoke. "Now we need to find a ride."

"Passage," the shorter girl chirped.

"What?"

"Passage, Norbu. When you're getting a boat, you say you're getting 'passage.' If we're going to do this, we should do it right. You don't say 'ride' with boats. That's 'land-lover' talk."

"And what's wrong with loving the land?" Norbu scoffed. "Without the ground we'd all fall down into space. I think that's worth a little appreciation. Not," she added dismissively, "that I'm saying I love any ground. I prefer skies, naturally, but I have a good working partnership with earth. Water ain't done anything to me, either. And don't you sigh at me, Dmag!"

"I wasn't sighing," the short girl, Dmag, lied. "I was breathing the salty sea air. Sailors are always going on about that, too."

"Hm," sniffed Norbu. "Don't see why they need to go throwing spices in perfectly good air."

"We should get on with finding passage. We don't want to stay in one place too long. Oh, and Norbu?"

"Hm?"

"I think I'll do the talking. No need for you to bother."

"Hm."

The two girls scurried/marched (or marched/scurried, depending on which one any observers considered to be in charge) along the docks. At every ship, they would stop, stare at the vessel, and then move their scrutiny to the men working on and around it. The stares were rather unsettling. Dmag's was like a piper on a beach. It would lightly rush around in a pattern that could only make sense to a bird with a tiny brain, and then retreat in a panic when the tide of returned interest came in, coming back as soon as the sand was dry again like nothing had happened. Norbu's gaze, on the other hand, was made of refined metal. It was hard, unpleasantly reflective, and far heavier than it had any right to be. Fortunately, Norbu didn't find the individual people in front of her terribly important, preferring to take in the whole scene at once and so inadvertently sparing the sailors an only slightly metaphorical closer encounter with an anvil (or anchor, if a more seaside comparison is preferred).

"Not this one," Norbu declared.

"Why not? It seems like a nice, busy ship to me."

"Not this one. It smells funny."

Dmag hesitated before stating the obvious. "I expect that's a result of all the dead fish they're unloading."

"Well, I don't like it. And if they're fish-men, they probably aren't going all the way to the Earth Kingdom, anyway."

"You could have just said that."

"You could have realized it yourself and saved me the time."

Dmag nodded. "That's true. Good thing we're not in a rush."

Norbu gave her a dirty look.

They moved on to the next ship, which was loading up supplies for a long voyage and worked metal goods. Norbu crossed her arms. "This one might work."

Dmag grinned. "I agree." She winked suggestively at a sailor who was carrying a barrel onto the ship and leaned evocatively against her staff. The man, at least double the girl's age, grimaced.

"Dmag, what are you doing?"

"Well, we don't have much money, so I figured out I'd get us a discount on the passage."

Norbu resisted the urge to smack both her own and her companion's foreheads. "Did any of those pirate stories you like so much talk about the dangers of flirting with men who've been out to see for weeks with no women around?"

"Hm, not unless you're talking about the parts where they walk the girlie off the plank and the hero has to swing on a rope and save her from a dunkin'."

"Let's pick another ship."

Dmag waved a farewell at the sailor, who was trying very hard not to notice. "Okay. But you're saying that mostly because metal goods means they're likely heading to the Water Tribe, and not because you're afraid of men, right?"

A pause. "'xactly."

The third ship was, as mandated by tradition, just right. It was a large cargo ship, crewed by both men and women, and was carrying exports of silk goods to the Earth Kingdom. Norbu and Dmag found the captain directing the loading of foodstuffs from the dock. They stopped in front of him and stared until he reacted. "Um, g'day, ladies. Can I help you?"

Dmag started to speak, but Norbu cut her off. "This your boat?"

"The _Summer's Breath_ is the worthy vessel, and I am Captain-"

"Fine," Norbu cut him off. "We'll take a ride."

There was a polite silence. "Your pardon?"

Dmag masterfully employed an ancient hip-bump technique to push the taller girl aside and took over the conversation. "We're seeking passage to the Earth Kingdom. We can do some paying, of course, and I can guarantee we'd be very valuable passengers..." She winked at the captain and smiled coquettishly.

He swallowed rather croak-ettishly.

Norbu swatted the shorter girl on the side of the head, nearly knocking her head-scarf loose. Dmag gasped and quickly grabbed for it before it could slide off her forehead. Norbu took the opportunity to interject. "Yes, very valuable. We're... uh... witches, you see."

The captain blinked. "Witches."

"Yes." Norbu stood at her full height. "We tell fortunes, submit requests for good weather for folk, do cheap coin tricks, teach martial arts-based exercise classes. You know, witch stuff."

The captain considered that. "And this is a good thing for me?"

"'f course."

Dmag, her headwear back in place, batted her eyes and smiled. "We could bring you pleasant weather and favorable winds for the voyage."

Norbu nodded. "And we wouldn't be cursing you or your vessel with any hexes, either."

That settled that matter. On the subject of sleeping arrangements, the captain was less willing to negotiate generously, until Norbu escalated her scowl into a full-on Evil Eye that had the man seeing storm clouds in his future. He gave the girls his own cabin.

In the solitude of the rather nicely appointed room, the two girls removed their head-wraps and shook their hair free. A vivid blue arrow was visible the front of Norbu's scalp, which was shaved smooth. Dmag's head was similarly half-bare, but her own skin was unmarked. Their dark brown hair looked even more alike when uncovered.

"Well, that's been settled. We're away." Norbu sat on the bed and let out a deep breath.

Dmag gave the other girl an evaluating look. "You could have been a bit nicer to everyone out there. People out in the real world like their girls clever and flirtatious. Not cranky."

Norbu didn't return her friend's gaze. "Cranky? Yes, I suppose I might be." She closed her eyes. "In the last week, I've only seen my people, 'cept for you of course not discounting our friendship but you can be annoying sometimes but anyway... I saw my people wiped out by soldiers I didn't even know were our enemies, I escaped only because our Sky Bison sacrificed themselves while we ran away, and now we're smuggling ourselves across the ocean to see if there are any Nomads left and then hide away forever." Norbu's eyes flicked open, and she gave Dmag the full power of her disconcerting stare, a stare that hadn t existed a week ago. "And we don't even know why this is all happening. Yes, I expect I'm a bit cranky."

Dmag laid her staff, a cheap replacement for the old glider that she used to enjoy so much, beside the bed and sat down next to her friend. They simply sat together for a long while.

The winds favored their voyage.

**END**


	64. Round Robinsquirrel

_Hey, check it out- I have an actual winning ASN drabble contest entry this time! I had a lot of fun doing the actual writing, but the text formatting was a pain to do with message board tags. Fortunately, my HTML knowledge was enough to make fixing things up for this site only a mild additional annoyance. The criteria for the piece was:_

**_Tales told on Slumber Party_**

**_In Episode 308 we have one story by Katara and a piece of a tail of another story by Sokka. It's NOT enough. I need MORE tales. These tales needn't to be the tales told by GAANGsters that night. They just must be tales of a sort that people tell on slumber parties in Avatar world._**

**_Criteria:_**

**_Amusement- Tale must be amusing._**

**_Authorship- Show the storyteller._**

**_Difference- Ways of a tale are different from the ways of the real world. You can be afraid of a wolf who can eat you, but you can't be afraid of a wolf who can deceive you into unnecessary distribution of your relative's address and personal information. Consider the difference._**

* * *

Round Robinsquirrel

"_And so the Lord put the rebels to death, slaughtering them with the Agni Sword. Their blood purified the land, cleansing it of the curse and restoring sanity to the industrious peasants. With order restored, the Lord returned to his throne, and administered the land with strength of will, passing on his wisdom to his loyal children, and the land knew peace forever more._"

"..."

"**...**"

"_Well?_"

"That's a nice story, Azula."

"**Eh.**"

"_Nice? Yes, I suppose you could call it that._"

"..."

"_..._"

"**...**"

"_Girls, we have a problem. Our stories, as the lesser educated might put it, stink._"

"**Yes.**"

"Um, yeah, kinda."

"_Ty Lee's stories are all formulaic romances with thinly veiled parallels to real events and people..._"

"..."

"_It's not that they're bad, you just need more variety._"

"I... guess."

"_And Mai, your stories all feature a sardonic girl who gets swept up in a journey, but she spends the whole time snarking about the silly things she encounters, and then dies when you get bored with the plot._"

"**Whatever.**"

"_Mine are, of course, grand examples of formal Court-appropriate storytelling, proving that I mastered all the relevant lessons from the tutors. Sadly, it seems that the style doesn't translate well to more relaxed settings._"

"**Is this going somewhere?**"

"I think I know what she's saying. You want us to team up!"

"_...actually, I was going to say that I need to research new storytelling methods, but you may be on to something, Ty._"

"Yay!"

"**Oh, this won't end well.**"

"Who's going to start who's going to start who's going to start?"

"_Well, since you're so enthusiastic-_"

"YAY!!"

"_Just... start the story._"

"Okay! Um................................................. Once upon a time-"

"**Come up with that yourself?**"

"Once! Upon! A! Time! ...there was a beautiful girl with pink hair named Zi Shuga. She was happy and always smiled and loved everyone and everything around here. She was also really smart and athletic, and a Firebender who was also really good with weapons and hand-to-hand fighting. Everyone who knew Zi Shuga loved her, and felt better whenever she was around, because she was so smart she was able to solve all their problems for them. All the boys were in love with her, but she was looking for that special someone, but didn't hold that against the boys and matched them up with girls that would be right for them. But one day she met the great Prince Mattaki, who was just perfect for Zi Shuga because he was just as perfect as she was-"

"**My turn. Mattaki's supposed perfection came from his tainted blood. He was the son of the Spirit of Death and a great foreign Warlord. While his heritage made him like a god among men, he was constantly afflicted by pain and torment because the two sides of his blood warred with each other at the most basic level. Mattaki heard of perfect little Zi Shuga, who was just as much of a living deity as he was but didn't have to deal with the same misfortune his own uncaring parents had passed on to him, and knew jealousy. He pretended to romance her at their meeting, and invited the little melon-head to visit him as his castle. Mattaki's fortress home was a great distance away, and could only be reached by traveling across haunted lands. The sights and trials there would break Zi Shuga's spirit, and then when she arrived, he would kill her and drink her-**"

"_Let's not be tasteless, hm? Anyway, Zi Shuga prepared to set out on her journey to Mattaki's castle. She consulted her father's wise advisors, three old woman rumored to have magic powers. The first looked into Zi Shuga's heart, and gave her a walking stick blessed with good luck. The second looked into Zi Shuga's mind, and gave her a cape made from the wings of a dragon. The third looked into Zi Shuga's eyes, and gave her a-_"

"Komodo rhino!"

"_... a komodo rhino, descended from the great Lord of Rhinos who served her father. Zi Shuga left on her journey, letting the light of the sun guide her. She-_"

"**Walked until night, when she set up camp. As she tried to sleep, her tent was attacked by a group of bandits, because really, what do you think is going to happen to a girl traveling alone through the wilderness? They all had swords and-**"

"Were really mean, but Zi Shuga was such a great fighter and Firebender that she didn't have any trouble with the bandits and beat them all! They were so impressed by her fighting, and they were all so in love with her beautiful looks, that they pledged to be her servants forever!"

"_Zi Shuga looked solemnly on the bowing bandits, and did make them swear an oath of loyalty to her self and her bloodline, and lo, the walking stick she had been given did shine with the light of the sun, and was revealed as a royal scepter. Its light turned the bandits into proud warriors the likes of which she had been descended from, and she made them into her personal guard. She asked if any of the former bandits knew the way to Mattaki's castle, and-_"

"**One said, 'Hey, I know a guy who knows a guy who can get us a ride on a skyship.'**"

"A skyship?"

"_Really, Mai, that's getting a bit too ridiculous._"

"**Oh, but the perfect pink hair and the cape made of dragon wings are okay?**"

"_Whatever._"

"**That's my line. So, the group rode the skyship to Mattaki's homeland. The captain was a very smart young woman who didn't care about their quest, and made sure she was paid up front, and then flew away as soon as the all the stupid people were off her ship.**"

"Zi Shuga led her happy friends through Mattaki's lands, which were very beautify and sunny and filled with funny fluffy animals and pretty flowers and tall trees and lots of poofy clouds-"

"_Because Mattaki was a tactical genius and knew the value of a good cover._"

"And along the way they met a big fuzzy-"

"**Wolfbat. It could smell Zi Shuga's gullibility, so it pretended to befriend her. When night came, it struck at the group, and sucked the blood of all the servants-**"

"Except for the cutest one, named Huan!"

"**...and then attacked Zi Shuga. The girl saw the evil beast swooping down at her, and she felt fear clutching at her heart. She knew there was nothing she could do to stop the monster from killing her, for its mastery of flight gave it superior speed, and her Firebending was useless against the great shadows that clothed it.**"

"_When, suddenly, Zi Shuga felt herself lifted into the air. Her magic cape had come to life, flapping like dragon wings, giving her the power to fly. She swooped above the Wolfbat and grabbed its wings. It flapped furiously against her, but Zi Shuga was too powerful for him. She carried it high above the moon-_"

"The stars twinkled prettily!"

"_Thank you, Ty. Then Zi Shuga swooped down, letting gravity carry her! She felt the wind biting at her skin, but she was too great a Firebender to be frozen by a petty element like Air! The wolfbat was coated in frost, and at the last second before both woman and monster were about to hit the ground, Zi Shuga let go and swooped up again. The wolfbat crashed into the ground, shattering into a million bloody ice fragments!_"

"**Awesome.**"

"Um... so, the next day, Zi Shuga and Huan continued on their journey. The other animals saw what the bat wolfbat did, so they came together to protect Zi Shuga so that she didn't have any more bad nights. She reached Prince Mattaki's castle, and found that it was made of sparkly diamonds and with silver trim! It was the most beautiful castle ever anywhere!"

"_And so the confrontation played out. Zi Shuga, the vision of female perfection on Earth, did do battle against the corrupt demi-spirit, the god-like Mattaki. Mattaki betrayed Zi Shuga's visions of love, and attacked her with the power of cold and shadow. They did battle at the top of tallest tower, and the conflict lasted many nights and days, the forces of male and female power locked in complementary struggle. But Zi Shuga was too wily for the petty machinations of Mattaki, and she tricked him into charging at her as she stood by the windswept edge of the tower. He passed by her as the sky opened up below him, teetered-_"

"**So she gave him a firm kick in the rear and the moron fell off the tower.**"

"And then Zi Shuga's rhino, named Happy, ate him! She married Huan, and lived happily ever after. The! End!"

"_..._"

"**...**"

"..."

"**...**"

"_...well, that was fun. Who's for snacks? Servant, bring us cheesy puffs!_"

"This is the best slumber party, ever!"

"**Meh.**"

END


	65. Hidden AGender?

_I've received several requests for a "Genderbender" piece, as it's apparently a popular form of comedy in shipping-heavy fandoms, but it wasn't until recently that I was hit by inspiration. (It was sharp and heavy.) I actually have an idea for a sequel, so look for that sometime soon.  
_

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**Hidden A-Gender?**

Katara the Waterbender stood atop the his village's wall, watching the Fire Nation ship draw closer out of the ocean mists. As the only young man in the village, and the only Waterbender in a generation, it was his responsibility to protect the women and children from whatever evil the Firebenders had in mind this time. Plus, in a way, it was an act of redemption. He and the Airbender girl Aang had set off the trap that had brought this invading ship to the village, and it was a need to make up for such a stupid mistake that had led Katara to stay behind after Aang had been banished.

Katara heard the shifting of snow to his left. He turned to find his older sister standing beside him atop the wall, wearing... full war paint and a warrior's uniform? "Sokka, what are you doing?"

Sokka, despite her ridiculous appearance, had that patronizing look that Katara suspected all big sisters used on their little brothers. "Helping you. It's not like you're a real warrior. You were too little to be taught anything when Dad left to fight in the war-"

"I am _too_ a warrior-"

"And you're not a real Waterbender-"

"I am _too_ a Waterbender-"

"-because the only thing you know how to do is move some waves around and capture fish since Dad couldn't find you a teacher," Sokka finished authoritatively. "What are you going to do against that Fire Nation ship?" She gestured to the incoming vessel, which had drawn a lot closer during the brief argument.

A _lot_ closer.

"Run!" Katara shouted.

He and Sokka jumped off the wall as the warship slammed into their village's little ice construct. It crumbled into snow behind the siblings, flowing out into the village and so cushioning their fall, their heavy bodies sinking into the mess. In too much of a hurry to bother digging, Katara threw out a hand, and the snow covering him flew away; that was pretty much the extent of his Bending ability this far from water. Katara quickly went to help his sister as the warship's prow hissed and opened into a ramp.

"Thanks," Sokka wheezed as Katara helped her up. Her makeup had been washed off by the snow, making her femininity more obvious.

"Looking real frightening there, big sister," Katara smirked.

"Sexist," Sokka sniffed.

The pair turned at the sounds of footsteps. A young man, fully armored and wearing an open helmet, was stomping down the ship's ramp. Two soldiers, similarly armored and hidden behind skull-like face-plates, followed behind him.

Targets.

Sokka let loose with a high-pitched screech that reminded Katara of an angry arctic hen, and charged at the lead Fire Nation soldier, the young one. Katara couldn't help but wince. His older sister was bearing a spear, but holding it the completely wrong way, with both hands at the weapon's butt and the rest of the weapon extended haphazardly into the empty air. Sokka had always shown an academic interest in how their tribe's weapons worked, but their mother had tried to encourage her daughter's intelligence and mechanical aptitude instead.

That probably wasn't the best choice, in retrospect.

The young Fire Nation soldier grabbed the spear just below the point, and yanked. It came easily out of Sokka hands, and the girl tumbled forward into the snowy ground. He snapped the spear in two and threw the pieces away, then kicked Sokka in the head when she tried to get up.

Katara wanted to attack, but couldn't bring himself to overcome his fear.

The Fire Nation soldiers turned their attention to the rest of the gathered villagers, who had stupidly come out of their tents to see the invaders. "Where is she?"

No one answered.

The young soldier snarled and lunged for the villagers. Katara thought about attacking, but before he could, the soldier had grabbed hold of Gramp-Gramp, the only male besides Katara to remain behind. "She'd be about this age? Master of all elements? I know you're hiding her!"

Katara had no idea what the soldier- he sounded like a teenager- was looking for, but that was the worst case scenario. If they had what he wanted, they could give it to him and then he might leave, but this time, appeasement wasn't an option. They had no choice but to fight and win.

Katara gritted his teeth, straightened his arms, and _shoved_ with all his might in the Fire Nation teen's direction.

A splat of snow splashed into the young soldier's face.

With a raging roar, he thrust his fist out and fountain of flame ignited into the air. The shear concussive force of the blaze's sudden appearance in the air knocked Katara off his feet. Back near the Fire Nation ship, Sokka rubbed her head and moaned.

That's when the chirping voice sounded. "What are you doing to them?!"

Everyone turned to the village's entrance. Aang, the Airbender girl, had returned from her banishment, and looked ready to cry at the sight of the Fire Nation attack.

There was silence.

The young soldier spoke again. "Where is the Avatar?"

Aang burst into tears. The young soldier actually began looking uncomfortable under his helmet. "Why are you crying? I won't hurt anyone if you hand the Avatar over to me."

It took Aang a while to articulate her response. She was sobbing enthusiastically, giving her voice a stutter, and then she actually started _hiccuping_. Eventually, she managed to get out her words. "I'm- I- I'm the (hiccup)- the- the Ava (hiccup)- Avatar!"

No one moved.

Katara just couldn't bring himself to believe it. This littel girl? The Avatar? This adorable little thing (not that Katara liked her _that way_, but she couldn't be cuter with her little Air Nomad outfit and dark hair tied into pigtails on either side of her arrow) was the Master of All the Elements? The young Fire Nation soldier was evidently having the same trouble. "Are you sure?" he ventured.

Aang, still sobbing, rubbed an eye and nodded.

The young soldier turned to the other two who had come out of the ship with him. "Get my Uncle! Now!"

Before he could turn back, Katara saw Aang meet his eyes, and _wink_.

After several minutes, a older, fatter man came out of the ship. He wore no armor besides a standard chestplate, and was yawning and stretching as he walked into the village. "Really, Prince Zuko, I was just getting ready for a nap."

_Prince_ Zuko? The young man had removed his helmet, giving everyone a good view of his horrific facial scar. He pointed furiously at Aang, who had calmed to the point of repeated sniffling. "This little girl says she's the Avatar!"

The Uncle looked at Aang, then back at Zuko. "Okay."

"Okay?!"

"Well, she's dressed like an Airbender. Granted, she's a little younger than I was expecting-"

"A _little_ younger!"

"-but the world is full of many strange things, especially where the Spirits are involved. The question, Prince Zuko, is what you're going to do about her?"

"...what?"

"She's a little girl, nephew. Are you really going to take her back to your father in chains?"

Zuko looked back at Aang. She sniffled again. "Please, sir, don't hurt me." Her voice, high-pitched and pleading, tugged at heartstrings in Katara that he suspected were built into his male gender. Zuko didn't look like he was taking things any better. She was just _too cute_.

Sokka, sitting happily in the snow, was sneering.

It took a while, as the Prince was evidently not used to making hard decisions, but in the end he took his forces and departed in peace, warning Aang to stay out of trouble.

Later, Aang and the Water Tribe siblings attacked Zuko's ship as they passed it, flying on their journey to the North Pole. Sokka accused Aang of flirting with the Prince. Katara groaned and couldn't help but get a little angrier at this Fire Nation royal.

**END**


	66. What's Your AGender?

_And now for the sequel no one wanted but that you're getting anyway..._

_

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_

**What's Your A-Gender?  
**

Zuko was feeling a bit outnumbered.

He had sailed around the world, he had walked the length of the Earth Kingdom as a fugitive from two nations, he had betrayed his true honor for the approval of a monster, and he had turned his back on everything he thought he wanted to restore that honor. Zuko was not someone who was unaccustomed to adversity, but his current situation might just be too much for him.

He was stuck in an Air Temple with a group of _completely_ crazy _girls_!

To be fair, all girls were a little crazy, and most of the females here in the Western Air Temple were no worse than average. Teo was a bit eccentric, Haru was way too concerned with the shine of her hair, and The Duchess was the second little sister Zuko had never risked insanity to even contemplate wanting, but they were polite enough to him. Actually, the rudest of the group was a boy- Katara. While Zuko acknowledged that the Waterbender had good reason to dislike him, he was really starting to resent the frequent insults and hostile shoulder bumps.

The other boy in the group was both better and worse in a lot of ways. Toph didn't have any history with Zuko, and was quite accepting of the Prince as the Avatar's Firbending teacher, but the younger boy was just... _odd_. He was a bulky, powerful Earthbender, but he acted even prissier than Haru! Once, Toph had even asked Zuko to braid his hair.

That made Zuko uncomfortable in ways he didn't want to ponder.

No, what tipped the annoyance level of the local female population over the top was the source of most of the feminine craziness- Aang and Sokka. One was the Master of all the Elements. The other was a bossy older sister. Together, they were a disaster.

Take the recent trip to the home of the Sun Warriors...

Aang was sitting on her Sky Bison's head, steering Appa towards the ancient ruins Zuko had described. The Fire Prince himself was sitting in the boat-like saddle, looking over the left side at the passing ocean. Sokka was seated at the front of the saddle, facing Zuko with her arms crossed, her eyes never leaving him.

Eventually, he couldn't take it anymore. "What?"

Sokka shrugged. "What?"

Aang turned around. "What?"

Zuko shut his eyes for a moment and growled. "You're been staring at me this whole trip! If you have something to say, say it."

"It's nothing!" Sokka protested. "I was just thinking! Staring, you know, at nothing."

Zuko continued scowling. "Your eyes were focused. I checked that."

Aang began grinning. "Sokka has a cruuuuuuuuuuuuuush!"

"I DO NOT!" Sokka screeched.

Zuko smacked his forehead. "Look, forget about it. I don't really care."

"No! You've got it all wrong! I don't _like_ you!"

Aang frowned. "Aw, that's mean. Don't you think he's good-looking?"

"I didn't say that!" Sokka blurted out. She paused, then added, "I didn't _not_ say that either."

Zuko groaned. "Please stop talking."

"_I_ think he's good-looking," Aang drawled. "And I'm an _expert_. When he teaches me Firebending, he doesn't wear a shirt!"

Zuko turned his face so that the two girls could only see his scarred side. Blushes were harder to see against the old injury. Granted, Aang's teasing was a very silly thing to let get to him, but something about the younger girl's voice sneaked things passed Zuko's defenses. "And now I'm going to be fully dressed every time we practice. No wonder you're a slow learner."

Aang laughed at that, and Zuko had to work really hard to suppress a smile.

Sokka groaned. "You two are making me uncomfortable with all this flirting."

This time, Zuko could feel the blush burning even deeper than his scar. He normally didn't feel this warm unless he was doing more intense Firebending. "Knock it off! I'm not flirting with her! I don't know why you're here, but if you can't stop acting like an immature little gossip, at least do me the favor of leaving me out of it!" Zuko was barely able to bite back an exasperated cry of, "Women!" He had a long history of being a relatively weak guy in the company of deadly female warriors, and had a fine self-preservation instinct.

He turned look Sokka in the face. To Zuko's surprise, she wasn't angry. Her eyes were hard and intense, but her frown had a fragile edge to it. When she spoke, her voice was soft and bitter. "I'm _not_ a gossip." She sat back down, crossed her arms again, and very pointendly kept her gaze fixed on her feet.

The atmosphere after that was quite awkward, even though the steady breeze of travel was keeping the air crisp and clean. Naturally, it was Aang who broke the silence first; she seemed to think that having cute little pigtails gave her a license for impertinence, and Zuko couldn't bring himself to disagree. It had been like that since the South Pole. "So, is there some kind of rule against guy Benders wearing shirts?"

Zuko didn't take the bait. Sokka was still refusing to react.

Aang stayed chipper. "I mean, Katara is always just wearing his under-wrappings when we practice Waterbending. And all the fighters in the Earth Rumble didn't have shirts- and believe me, some of them would have been a lot better off with more clothes on. And Sifu Hotpants," she stopped to giggle here, "doesn't like wearing a shirt when he's Firebending. It's weird. Sometimes a little uncomfortable for me, but still _very_ enjoyable." She turned to grin at Zuko again.

Zuko averted his eyes.

Sokka groaned and ran her hands through her hair. "See? This is what I'm trying to protect you from."

Zuko just stared. "What?"

Sokka leaned over and took that _tone_, the one she always adopted when ordering Katara around. "You're pretty clueless for a guy, but I guess that's because you didn't get out much. Zuko, sweety, I know girls are awesome and pretty and giggle all hot-like, but you can't trust them. I mean, take Aang."

"No means no!"

"Shut up, Aang. Yeah, she's flirty, but you have to realize that it's all just a manipulation."

Zuko couldn't help but nod. Sokka was actually talking something that sounded like sense. "Like at the South Pole!"

"Exactly!" Sokka's grin was as triumphant as Chin the Conqueror about fifteen minutes before he died. "And while we can trust Aang- _right now_- to just try to cuddle up to you to get you to go easy on her during Firebending training, eventually she'll lose sense and try for more. You can't trust teenage girls."

Zuko privately agreed, but couldn't help but point out the obvious. "_You're_ a teenage girl."

"Exactly! You can't trust me! If I ever get you alone and start talking about your sweaty, finely sculpted chest, I'm up to something not good for you."

"Right..."

"So, Aang's here to protect you from me. And I'm here to protect you from Aang."

Zuko did the math. "Why couldn't Katara take your place?"

Sokka moved over to Zuko and patted his shoulder. "Zuko, try to keep up. Two _boys_ can't go off alone with a girl. People would talk."

"About what?"

Sokka gave Zuko a look.

Zuko got it. "Oh. Wow, this is actually kind of complicated. But... it kind of sounds true."

Sokka nodded. "That's because a hot girl is saying it while invading your personal space. But that's okay, I'll make sure you learn."

Zuko jolted and scrambled away.

Sokka and Aang laughed, and then had the gall to high-five each other.

Girls were crazy. (But cute.)

**END**

**

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**

_Okay, I'm done with this now._


	67. Downriver

_Drabble contest rules:_  
_Rivers mean many different things. They connect area along the banks to each other, they provide borders and separation for the areas on each side, they are bringers of life and death, as well as baptism and new beginnings. These meanings vary from culture to culture, and among different rivers within the culture, and even the same river may mean many things as once. All cultures really on fresh water, and so all cultures must deal with rivers._

_Requirements_  
_Symbolism - Rivers can mean many different things, I'm not interested in the special river(s), but what it means (either in the context of the story or to specific characters). There doesn't even have to be a real river so long as I can see the metaphorical one.__ However the metaphor should make sense. If you want to associate the river with... say learning, you'd better be able to justify it pretty well._

_Creativity - Possibly the least creative requirement, but it's a old standby for a reason. Bonus points for thinking of a symbolism that I did not list in the intro._

* * *

**Downriver**

_"Hey, you guys are Waterbenders!"_

_"You too? That means we re kin!"_

Buniq sighed and threw her walking stick into the muck. "Well, it all had to end somewhere."

"What's ending?"

Buniq spun and drew her knife in one motion. It was whalebone, passed down through her family, and one of the few such weapons still possessed by the tribe. It was also quite sharp, but that didn't seem to be upsetting the man who had snuck up on her. Judging by his clean, bald head, he was probably used to having fine blades close to his skin.

Buniq bowed politely. "Good afternoon, Nomad. I was scouting for a land upon which my people could settle, but it looks like this swamp stretches on for quite a while. I need to get back to my clan to report, and then scout a different direction."

The Airbender nodded. Buniq couldn't help but let her eyes fall on the monk's arrow-like tattoo. After a moment, he spoke again. "I'm up from the Southern Air Temple. I was leading a herd some years ago, and passed over this swamp. It's a swamp, of course, but I find it to be a very... intense place. There's a beautiful tree in the center that all travelers should really visit at least once."

Buniq's response was late in coming. "Maybe next time I'm in the area."

The Airbender nodded again and smiled. "Excellent. I'm sure you won't be disappointed."

"Goodbye," Buniq hurried off, before the monk could speak again. She stopped and bowed again, holding it for a moment to assuage any offense.

The Airbender spoke again just as Buniq was ready to dash away. "One of my favorite bits about this swamp, is how isolated it is. I can sit here as long as I want, unbothered by anyone, and just think. Granted, we have places like that in the Temples, but not with so much [i]life[/i] as is here. Life begets life."

Buniq paused. "I imagine it does." When she reported to the elders, much later, she reminded them of that fact.

OoO

Eun turned to leave, her arms full with her overstuffed travel sack, and nearly bumped into Mother. The older woman didn't even flinch. "You're not going anywhere."

Eun deftly stepped around Mother. "All evidence to the contrary."

"Eun! Enough of this ridiculousness! We are your family, and your people. You would really walk away from us for a pack of thieves and barbarians?"

The younger woman couldn't help herself. She threw the sack to the ground and whirled to face Mother. Her hanbok swirled around her like storm clouds caught in a tornado. "Three generations!"

"...what?"

"Three generations! That's how long they've lived on the other side of the river." Eun was breathing heavily now. "For three generations they've lived in peace with us. We called them thieves, and barbarians, and invaders, and more they never earned! The Law says that once three generations have gone by, any settlers become our countrymen! And now we're chasing them away! You would kill those who have earned The Law's protection!"

Mother sniffed at that. "The Law was meant for good people of the Earth Kingdom. Not Water Tribe vagrants. They could deplete the fish, and they can t be trusted near our homes. If our ancestors could have predicted this, they would have written that down!

Eun shook her head and sighed. "Not my ancestors. Those who break The Law no longer deserve its protection. So, if you are not my countryman, you are not my family. So I will go with what family I have left- my husband."

Mother screeched as the younger woman walked out. "I have no daughter! The Water Tribe thieves stole her! They killed her! Leave! I have no daughter!"

Eun heard the screaming even after she had fled the house. The words echoed in her head as she stepped into the boat where her blue-clad husband waited. She found a seat in the crowded vessel, pushed her sack under her bench, and took up an oar. The whole Tribe, mingled green and blue, began rowing as one, carrying their vessels up the river.

OoO

Nilak had already begun dismantling one of the boats by the time Tikaani returned with the results of the scouting missions. "You couldn't wait another hour?" Tikaani shouted with a bark of laughter.

Nilak waved for the others to continue the work, and jogged over to meet the older man. "Waiting would have apparently been a waste of time, considering your reaction. If we had to take to the seas again, you'd be spitting arrow-heads."

Tikaani shook his head. "You're too smart for own good. But yes, all the reports were positive. The land looks good, but no existing settlements were found. The main river branches in various spots close by, including into a lake with good fishing. It seems close to perfect."

"No _existing_ settlements?" Nilak turned to eye the river where it emptied into the sea.

Tikaani shrugged. "We found a cleared area further up the coast. Could have been a village, but I'm not familiar enough with this weather or environment to say how long ago it would have to have been. Nothing to indicate any recent activity, though, aside from the natural residents."

Nilak considered that. "Have some of the islanders who joined us take a look. They do some farming and such there, they might have a better idea."

Tikaani nodded. Nilak's dreams of an easier life in the Earth Kingdom had been just as enticing on the smaller islands as on the ice plains. "I'll do it right now. Also, I'd like to send some out with a few hunting parties, see if we can determine what kind of predators and prey lurk around here."

Nilak laughed. "You can take a short break, if you want. This isn't the South Pole, or the sea. We aren't going to die for an hour's delay."

"I know. That's why we left. But I'd rather be sure."

"Suit yourself, elder."

"Stop making me feel old."

Thirty hours later, Tikaani looked at the burning boats, all the brighter for the darkness of night. The other Waterbenders were throwing sea water on them, but he could see that the ships were already a lost cause. Whatever it was that the pirates had thrown on them, it burned no matter how much water was poured over it.

A maiden emerged from the shadows, carrying a bloody spear. Tikaani was surprised to see that it was his daughter. "What now?" she asked him.

He sighed. He was the oldest, most respected man left alive. "Upriver. Away from the coast and its pirates."

OoO

"You know, I think I hate the snow."

"So leave."

"...huh."

**END**


	68. Sharing a Treat

_In my defense, Avatar Spirit's shipping thread is a very strange place._

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**Sharing a Treat**

Her fans, sword, armor, and uniform had all been taken, all to no effect. Suki's defiant stare could have been a weapon all its own.

Azula smiled pleasantly. "I've brought a little something to help the process along." She placed a metal container on the small table next to her. "I must be honest with you- I'm not terribly experienced in interrogation or torture. We typically employ specialists for that type of thing, but it's really only of immediate use in the field. There's actually very little your nation can throw at us that can't be beaten with enough Firebenders."

Suki said nothing.

Azula tapped the metal container with her fingernails. "However, I need what's in your head. So I'm going to have make due with what's on hand. That includes my beauty, intelligence, and... this." She lifted the lid from the container, revealing a dark brown sludge.

Then Suki detected the scent. Chocolate. Chocolate in a pot.

Azula lifted the pot with one hand and placed the palm of the other on the container's bottom. Shortly, the chocolate began steaming. "Would you like something to eat, Kyoshi Commander Suki? It's the highest quality, I can assure you, from my private stores. Have you ever tasted chocolate before?"

Suki looked away from the chocolate.

Azula huffed. "I must insist you try some. Here." She dipped a finger into the liquid candy, coating it, and then reached over towards her prisoner. Azula lightly grazed the finger over Suki's lips, and the Kyoshi Warrior tasted the bitter sweetness despite herself.

"There, doesn't that taste good? Do you know the other reason I like chocolate?" Azula's eyebrows lowered. "Sugar has a very high capacity for storing heat." The chocolate was now bubbling, the pot in Azula's open palm glowing slightly. Azula dipped her finger in again, but this time suspended the candy-covered digit above Suki's nose.

A single drop of chocolate fell.

Suki screamed. It didn't even occur to her that she could have stopped herself until it was already over.

Azula licked her lips. "So what will it be? The sweet, or the heat?"

**END**


	69. Gazing Above

_Hey, it's another ASN Drabble Contest Entry. This one was a winner! The theme was "Astronomy" with the only criteria being Creativity. This was actually inspired by a certain piece of music- if you want to hear it, just search Youtube for "John Williams Fortress of Solitude" and enjoy._

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**Gazing Above**

From the heavens, Yue the Moon Spirit looked down on the Earth.

She saw victory. The ones she had loved in life triumphed over the Fire Nation and Sozin s Comet, restoring balance. She watched as they reunited after their separate battles. She watched as the Honorable Prince was crowned to the applause of members of all nations. She watched as those nations rebuilt under the guidance of her friends and family. She watched as love flared between them.

Yue watched all this alone.

Among the changes that were overtaking the globe was a renovation of the Fire Lord's throne room. Dark wood was taken away, and windows were opened in the walls. Gold plating, pressed with intricate designs by the Sun Warriors, gilded every surface of the room, shining like the sun itself. Once completed, Yue's loved ones gathered once again, and witnessed as the new Fire Lord took his place and relit the Fires of the Throne.

Yue alone picked up on the detail; it would be invisible to any relying on mere reflected light for vision. When the Fires rose, a miniscule trace of smoke appeared. Firebending does not consume any physical fuels, and so produces no smoke with its pure use, but here a vapor resulted.

The smoke rose, riding the breeze out of the throne room and into the open air. It danced on the winds, ever ascending. As it passed the limits of Air, into the dark void, Yue could finally discern a constant shape, birdlike, and realized that its previous chaotic movement was in actuality a graceful flapping.

With that realization, the smoke became a glowing heron in her eyes.

Yue cupped her hands, and breathed a pool of moonlight into them. The pale white light rippled as the heron settled on its surface and looked up at her.

Gentle Yue, you truly give life to the Moon.

The Moon Spirit who was once a princess shimmered in surprise. There was no voice, no sound in this airless realm, but nevertheless the heron had communicated with her. She felt for the thread of meaning, and followed it to the bird floating in her hands. Smiling, she sent her glow back along that path.

You are a gracious guest, little bird. Your visit brings me happiness.

I bring much more, if you will.

What gifts could be given to the moon? I have no needs, anymore.

Dear Yue, everyone has needs, even Spirits. Once, I had need of purpose, and was given the gift of giving. I brought knowledge of much importance to humanity, and will do so again many times. Now, I have come to bring you a gift, as you were once human, and I have some familiarity with the fragile human heart.

I am grateful.

I know, child. Come with me, as we shed the trappings of our Earthly ties, and explore your realm.

Yue closed her ethereal eyes, and brought her cupped hands to her heart. The liquid moonlight within disjoined into unfocused glow. It swirled briefly around the heron, until the birdlike shape dissolved. The light continued to disperse, and Yue's image faded where the individual motes made contact. Eventually, all that was left were two invisible energies in a sea of dancing stars.

And now, child, I will teach the ways of the heavens. See the stars around us, which humans know only by their position and light. All is in motion, everywhere across Existence. Your own Earth travels even as you and it revolve around each other and spin in your dance. So do the stars, both close and at distances beyond any human comprehension, move around each other and even you. Come; let us see a star for what it is.

Yue spiraled around the energy that was once the heron and light filled the void. Yue took the light unto herself, and became a part of it, and so it became invisible to her. Where the center of the light once was, a different energy was hidden. It had no shape for eyes to see, but Yue could sense youth, playfulness, and a love of Story, such as filled a room when a charismatic voice regaled an audience around a fire. The energy shimmered under her attention, and were she still human, Yue would have giggled along with it.

These are the children under your care, gentle Moon, all spread far across Existence. They have much to teach you, but you will have time in which to learn. They pull on humans, just as they will pull on you, and so stories rise to make shapes out of them, give them names and reasons. You may share the stories with the stars, but they do not require it, and as time passes you will have less knowledge of stories and their purpose. Yet the stars' toys still become stories in their own right, and you must have familiarity with these.

The perception of the star faded. Yue had grown accustomed to the cold of the void since her ascension. Now, the energy that was born as Yue felt an abundance of heat and light chase away that coolness not unlike ice.

Sozin's Comet.

Yes. This comet is but one of many expressions of the elements in your void. Although you have a tie and influence over Waterbending, and Sun a similar relationship to Firebending, neither of you are the lone elementals your greatness implies you to be. This comet has no conscious, but lives nevertheless, an instance of Fire so pure that mortal Benders only suspect its existence.

Yue felt further energies influence her being- the lack of heat she still called cold, the gravity of great masses, and even chaotic reactionary releases of gasses struggling to fill the void.

All the elements reside here in the heavens. Just as Sozin's Comet exists for Fire, so do balls of Ice and Earth exist for their elements, and even clusters of gasses that would be called Air were they to make their way to your old home. They number as many as the stars, and some will even come to visit the lands you watch over before the Chaos of The End. The stars may someday reflect the legends born of these events, but perhaps it will all be more transitory than that. Let us refresh in the feel of these elements, child, before we move on once again. As we do, I think it time to discuss the nature of time and scale that the universe should really be measured in...

Time passed, in a way, for Yue in the void. Truly, though, she began to feel that it was a void in name only, for there seemed no end to the Spirits and Incorporeals that it contained. Some of them made Yue forget what it was to be human, and a certain chill, different from the physical cold of space, began to tinge her energy. At one point, she and the heron moved even beyond light, and its feel startled Yue when they abruptly encountered it again.

And so we have come to the physical end. We Spirits call this the Orange Band, for we can only ever perceive a small spot of it at the center of our conscious at any one time, and shifting our attention gives the impression that we are following a line of light around the cosmos. We cannot pass beyond the Band, but neither is it hardened to us. It is speculated by the oldest amongst us that there are beings beyond it, which look upon us as you look upon mortals. Now, let us ease into the Orange Band, and we will let it carry us on first part of journey home, as I have arranged for Sun to draw us to him...

Yue had never met Sun before, but the heron was old friends with Agni, and he was very polite to the new Moon. Perhaps due to her secret nature, Yue had never felt any great affinity or sympathy for Sun, but in this state, she at least perceived the magnificence he possessed as the root of all life.

Just as you possess, in your own way, gentle Moon.

At last we have returned to your station, and there is but one last thing I wish to show you before I leave. Look down, as once instinct guided you, and shine your light on that to which you feel the most drawn. I have shown you many things, gifted you with understanding required by your new existence, but I would not have you pay a price for it all.

Yue once again took physical form, and turned her gaze on the Earth. Light emanated from her translucent body, and Yue felt the richness of the sun in that light. Feeding on the gold, she exhaled the pale silver down onto the mortal realm.

A young Water Tribe man looked up at the light.

**END**


	70. Mairy Jane

_Loopy777 does not endorse drug use, nor any other activity that may impair brain function, such as watching TV. In fact, Loopy777 encourages a minimalist approach to medicine._

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**Mai-ry Jane**

To be fair, Sokka was a little preoccupied about having a night to himself for the first time in a _long_ time. Aang and Katara had gone to check out a local attraction called a "water park," and Toph decided to introduce herself to the local street-fighting circuit. That left Sokka to check out the busy taverns, sample their colorful array of fruity beverages, and maybe chat up a girl or two (not with any permanent intentions, not this soon after Yue).

So, it was pretty understandable that he hadn't seen the Knife-Throwing Fire Nation Girl until after he sat down next to her at the bar.

He gave an involuntary yelp when he noticed.

She just turned her head to face him, stared at his face for a second with oddly expressive eyes, and frowned. Three seconds later, she spoke, more slowly than Sokka had remembered. "Oh, heyyyy, the Water Tribe boy. How's my brother doin'?"

Sokka stared at her. "How am I supposed to know? Aang returned him the night after you broke off the deal and _attacked_ us."

The girl processed that. "Oh, yeah? We left just after sunset. Oooops." She raised a small black pipe to her lips and puffed out a sparkling blue cloud. She exhaled slowly, then turned back to Sokka. "My name's Maiiiii, by the way. It's spelled with an I." She demonstrated by closing one eye and pointing a finger at Sokka. Despite her lethargy, her hands were perfectly steady.

Sokka's jaw was slack. "Are you drunk?"

She might have smiled. "Nah. I just stopped in for a little Blue. It helps me deal with the Princess and the Fool."

Sokka eyed the pipe. "My life can get a little stressful, too, but I'm not sure about that stuff. You're acting really strange. Don't you want to attack me?"

Another puff. "I wouldn't care, even if I weren't Blueing. 's just a job. I'm off hours now." She stared at him again, her eyes not quite focused. "You want? It's good for what keeps you up at night."

_That_ sounded interesting. A night without the moon looking down on him? "Yeah, sure. I'm game."

Sokka woke up the next day hanging from his belt on a clothesline, and forever swore off sparkly smoke that came out of a pipe. The stuff was worse than getting drunk.

At least he hadn't woken up with Whatsername. With an I.

**END**


	71. Hahn and DEATH: A Remix

_So, if you enjoy the kind of short stories I write, you'd probably also be interested in the work of Lavanya Six. Her shorts are collected in "The Fun and Perky Warrior's Wolf tail" which is linked in my Favorites. This next piece is play on her own latest work, chapter 11 in her series, and features Death from Terry Pratchett's "Discworld" series._

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**Hahn and DEATH: A Remix**

It was supposed to be glorious. The last surviving member of the raiding party reaches the Admiral's observation deck, boldly announces his intention to destroy the monstrous Firebender who would destroy the last bastion of civilization on the planet, and then charges. The Admiral dies with a scream, the spear plunging easily into his heart, and as he gasps his last, realizes that his whole life was for naught, that he was a fool to think he could stand against the rugged warriors of the Northern Water Tribe. In some versions, the hero of the story follows the admiral into death, his task complete. In the better tellings, he goes on to escape, sustaining injuries, but beating back the army that would stand between him and his bride to be (a spirit-touched Princess!) who of course would greet him with a passionate kiss.

After all, that was the kind of stuff that was _supposed_ to happen with heroes.

Thus, Hahn was justifiably confused when all he experienced was sudden vertigo, lots of wind in his hair, and then a very cold, hard stop.

He looked around, and saw not the observation deck of the Fire Nation's command ship, but the outside hull of the ship bobbing atop the ocean waves. He saw not the twisted, bloody body of the enemy admiral, but his own form, head at an odd angle, being dragged down into the ocean by the weight of his stolen armor.

MANY WOULD HAVE EXPECTED BETTER DIVING TECHNIQUE FROM A MEMBER OF THE WATER TRIBES. IT'S STRANGE HOW FEW CONSIDER THE TEMPERATURE OF THE OCEAN THIS FAR NORTH. I VE MET QUITE A FEW SWIMMERS FROM THIS REGION, AND NONE HAD EVER TRIED IT MORE THAN ONCE.

Hahn turned to face the- speaker?- and suddenly things were much clearer. After all, what could be a better avatar for the Spirit of Death than a skeleton with glowing eyes, swathed in a black cloak, and holding a scythe?

The classics had to be respected.

Hahn, or rather, his immortal remains, looked down at where his body had sunk, and then back at Death. "That wasn't how it was supposed to be."

IT RARELY IS, was the not-unkind reply.

"I would have expected I'd be sadder. Aren't people supposed to cry when you come? But I just feel disappointed. I don't even care about leaving Yue, so much."

THAT'S THE LACK OF HORMONES. THINGS CHANGE WHEN YOU ARE NO LONGER BOUND BY YOUR PHYSICAL MEAT. BUT EITHER WAY, THERE'S NO NEED TO WORRY ABOUT YOUR PRINCESS. SHE WILL DO WHAT IS REQUIRED.

Well, there was that, at least. Something else about the statement captured Hahn's interest. "So there's more? For me?"

The eyeholes of Death's skull twinkled blue.

"Reincarnation? Or the Spirit World? Or something else?"

THAT'S WHAT YOU ARE GOING TO DISCOVER. SOME CONSIDER THE JOURNEY AN ADVENTURE ALL ITS OWN.

Hahn liked the sound of that. He felt himself fading away, and wasn't bothered by the sensation. However, before he could completely disappear into whatever came next, another thought occurred to him. "But... will anyone else every know about my adventure? How can I be a hero if no one knows?"

Death actually shrugged his bony form. IF THAT IS HOW YOU DEFINE A HERO, THEN I SUPPOSE YOU CAN'T. TO BE HONEST, THE CONCEPT OF HEROISM HAS CONSISTENTLY CONFUSED ME. IS THAT TRULY HOW IT GOES?

The last legacy to Hanh's existence would be his reply. "I guess I wouldn t know."

**END**


	72. Ironclad

_General runner-up ASN drabble contest entry:_

**_Theme: Sea_**

**_1. Write about a person or group of people and their interaction/experience with the high seas. _**  
**_2. Creativity - This prompt might seem geared a lot towards the Water Tribe, but don't think that's all you can write about! Unless the prose blocks my understanding of your writing, creativity almost always gets priority in my list of things to look out for. _**  
**_3. Emotion - I'm not saying make me cry per say, I'm saying make me feel something._**

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**Ironclad**

_There is a reason why some scholars refer to the Fire Nation's modern era as "The Age of Metal." Even before they mastered the art of mechanical engineering, they were able to mine, refine, and work metal to a greater degree than the other nations had previously thought possible. This, coinciding with new focus on centralized rule for the full set of Fire Nation Islands, is what is largely considering to be the most important enabling factor in Sozin's thirst for conquest._

Prince Sozin was present at his father's side when Ji Shi, an "engineer," presented his designs to the Fire Lord and assembled military advisors. Many of the men scoffed at the idea, and while they admitted that the concept of an armored ship had merit, they simply could not believe that an entire craft made of metal could float.

"A man in armor sinks to the bottom of the ocean, not matter how hard he tries to swim," Admiral Baichi laughed. "You would do the same to one of the Fire Lord's Royal Vessels?"

Ji Shi was obviously an eccentric personality. He nearly went for Baichi's throat, before remembering the guards in the room.

After the meeting, Sozin made sure he caught up with the engineer, somewhere out of earshot of the others. Ji Shi was so preoccupied that he didn't even notice the prince until the conversation was abruptly initiated. "I found your presentation enlightening."

The engineer gave Sozin a skeptical look, but Sozin's face radiated earnestness. Eventually, he gave up and replied. "I have put years into the development of those concepts. Someday, perhaps, another man will dream them up again and find a sponsor to build them."

Sozin smiled. "Who says you're not that man? Did you know that there is a tradition surrounding the Crown Heir? Upon beginning his or her military service, the Crown Heir is allowed to choose which unit, or vessel, to serve with. I, as the Crown Prince, can even request a ship built to my specifications. After all, no one is more capable of fighting for the Spirit of Fire, save perhaps the Fire Lord."

Ji Shi's face was slack, but his eyes were calculating.

Sozin nodded. "How soon can you have it built?"

Sozin learned quickly that a common practice amongst true engineers is to change their time estimates, upward, at every inquiry. Still, there was no doubt that progress was being made. The difficulties were all in the manufacturing, but once completed, each device was a wonder to behold. When Sozin saw the prototype engine spinning its wheels and belching black smoke, he felt something akin to love.

His father thought the whole project a waste, but honored the tradition and gave whatever funds and resources were needed. Their family had always been paragons of Honor. Thus, Sozin didn't at all rub it in when he found a use for his new vessel.

The pirate stronghold, according to the briefing delivered to the Fire Lord, was unassailable. The island itself had a difficult landscape, and the only point where troops could be landed within striking distance of the fortress was a narrow bay. The pirates had somehow acquired long-range catapults, capable of striking anywhere in the bay, meaning that any ship that approached would have to run a gauntlet of flaming ammo. An invasion of the island would lead to unacceptable losses. A blockade was recommended, to starve the pirates out, and provoke them into striking back in more open waters, where the fleet could deal with them.

Normally, the Avatar would deal with problems like this, but he was still away learning to fly with the Air Nomads.

Sozin knew an opportunity when he saw it. "Let my ship solve the problem for you." The council was just as skeptical as they had been towards Ji Shi, so Sozin had to make a deal. "Go ahead with the blockade plan, but I will take my metal ship into the bay, and see if we can't land the necessary troops. If we fail, the blockade will still succeed."

The Fire Lord had frowned. "You would risk your own life on this... ironclad?"

Sozin actually hadn't planned on being _with_ the ship, but he quickly realized that he had no choice. He nodded, and immediately after the meeting had gone to personally take over construction of the ship.

They had to step up the schedule, as Ji Shi's current predictions wouldn't have the ship completed until after the pirates had starved themselves to death. Construction crews worked all hours, pragmatic shortcuts were taken at every opportunity, and Ji Shi himself was giving up sleep to personally have a hand in all aspects of the project. The design was compromised, so that the ship would have just one trebuchet, but that would leave more room for troop transport, so the mission wouldn't be compromised.

The night before the ship was to set sail, Sozin met with his engineer. "You'll be sailing with us, tomorrow. If this ship sinks, you and I will sink with it." He expected an expression of fear.

The engineer just grinned, and punched Sozin's shoulder with all his strength. "I wouldn't miss it! I'm glad you have the strength to follow through on your beliefs."

They dubbed the ship _The Future_, and sailed out the next day. The ship not only remained afloat, it sped along the water like it had a sail and hurricane winds driving it. The black smoke rose above them, declaring their strength to all observers.

The battle itself was quite exciting. For every impressive feat, like when the pirate's catapulted fireballs simply bounced off the metal hull, there was a spectacular failure, like when the engine had refused to run in reverse. They had a brief skirmish with one of the pirate ships, which was no less spectacular for its brevity, and then they reached the beach and unleashed the Firebenders.

Even the Fire Lord had been impressed.

Sozin made sure to thank Ji Shi the engineer. "Someday, I will be Fire Lord. Before I die, I will see the whole Fire Navy made of metal. We will be faster than the Water Tribes, and sail further than the Earth Kingdom. The seas are now ours."

Ji Shi smiled with true joy. "I will need other engineers. Things will get... complex."

Sozin's voice was dark, and held nothing akin to joy. "You will have everything you need, and more."

**END**


	73. Moonlight

_I'll admit, I'm not really a fan of romantic Tokka, but how could I resist the Tokka Week prompt that fell on my birthday? You can check out the full information on Tokka Week at tokka-fans-united at deviantart dot com._

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**Tokka Week - Moonlight**

"Are you in?"

"Not yet," Sokka growled. "They're using several layers of encryption, not really surprising, but considering our time limit, I figured it would be easier to just spoof an authorized user access. So, I pulled their password-generation algorithms from the security servers, and also the stuff for their dynamic keys. Now I'm processing it all for a new set of login information. Once I have it, we can go in and just access their typical interface, no hacking involved."

Behind her visor, Toph closed her useless eyes. "Aside from the hacking you did to get all that stuff, plus the time it took to reverse-engineer their full login system. What part of that actually saved us time again?"

"...um, well, _I_ thought it was easier. And _I'm_ the hacker, so..."

"So _I'll_ just hold my breath until you get the power- and the life support- back on."

"...sorry. My hunger is making me cranky. First thing I'm going to do, after I get the air scrubbers back on, is hit the food generator. Anyway, I'm almost in, but I need to figure out the local Stellar Sector time to input into the last algorithm."

Toph shot a lightspeed-fast query through her cyborg components, and they came back with an answer before Sokka even finished speaking. "Right now it's 22:47:03. That's out of a twenty-four hour day, if it makes a difference."

Sokka blinked, opened his mouth to ask a question, and then stopped himself. He typed the time into his datapad, and set the algorithm running. "And... we're cleared. I'm bringing up the life support, the domestic hardware, the control console, and the interstellar comm. Congratulations, we're now the proud owners of a stolen Plasma Empire spacecruiser."

Toph ignored his rambling for a moment, and once again let her cybernetic systems whisper binary promises directly into her brain. "I can already detect the carbon dioxide levels dropping. Good work, Oh Master Hacker."

Sokka grinned at the praise. "Well, not everyone can manipulate the phases of matter, like you can with Solids. Some of us have to make do running the machines that keep us all from choking and freezing in space. Speaking of Master Manipulators, I just sent a message coded for the APPA-1, so we'll hopefully be rendezvousing with Aang and Katara soon."

"Then we're good to go." Toph cracked her knuckles. "You said you were hungry, right? I'll race you to the food prepper!"

Sokka didn't move. That simple lack of action, when the arrival of food was nigh, disturbed Toph more than the whole previous 'lack of oxygen' thing. "You okay, Master Hacker? I said that the soup's on."

Sokka shrugged. It was a subtle gesture, but Toph could detect it clearly. Her sonic receptors caught the returning soundwaves that her equipment was constantly emitting, and transformed the inherent data into a real-time image of Sokka's body, accurate to millimeter precision. She could sense any movement he made, whether Sokka was aware of it or not.

It felt like an eternity before he spoke. "How did you know what time it was? There aren't any utility broadcasts out this far, and we never calibrated our timekeepers off the local sun." He gave a soft laugh. "It's not a big deal, but... you know, I couldn't figure out how you did it."

Toph waved his awkwardness away. "The moonlight."

"Moonlight?"

She smirked. "Yeah, that little sliver of light that's shining through the window. All I needed was a quick look outside to get the data on the sun's brightness, the nearest moon's reflective intensity, and the way they move in relation to each other. I can tell what time it was just based on the intensity of the moonlight in here. Not bad, huh?"

Sokka was _supposed_ to banter with her. It was how they communicated. This solemnity was all wrong. Maybe it was because she mentioned a moon. Sokka had some _thing_ about moons, from some incident before she joined the APPA-1's crew. Regardless, he plowed on, refusing to be his normal, playful self.

"It's all numbers, though. Right?"

"Well, yeah, in the raw form, but my cybernetics-"

"So, basically, you see everything with numbers."

"...so?"

"I just... I mean, it's great that it works for you. I couldn't even imagine being blind. You know, like you, since birth. But... I'm a computer expert, and even I think a world of numbers sounds a little... cold."

"Sokka, what are you getting at? Really, I'm hungry."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't even be talking about this. It's lame of me. Come on, let's go eat."

"...wait."

Sokka waited. He hadn't even moved yet.

"Maybe... I could do without the numbers for a few moments."

"What do you-"

"Just hold still, Master Hacker." Toph activated a mental command, and the world went dark. All her cybernetics- the visor and sonic receptors and heat sinks and light decoders and everything else that covered her and were wired directly into her body- went into hibernation mode.

Toph's world went dark.

She reached out a hand, and after a few moments of groping into the void, one of Sokka's hands caught hers. She didn't let him hold on to her, instead traveling her hand up his arm, past his shoulder, jumped over his neck, and gently landed on his face. It was the work of only a few seconds to feel the contours of his visage, but Toph didn't rush things. She didn't treat herself very often.

"Okay, I got a good look at you. Lunch?" Her own voice sounded strange, heard only through her organic ears.

"Lunch! I thought you'd never ask." Sokka's voice, strangely, sounded exactly the same. Or, at least, that's the way she thought of it.

She reactivated her cybernetics and followed him happily, back in her cage of numbers...

A cage through which the moonlight shone.

**END**


	74. Proper Behavior

_Avatar Spirit Dot Net Drabble Contest entry. Criteria was:_

**_Right & Wrong_**

**_Bop it! (I want action! Not a long dissertation on the moralities of glaring at a hummingbird.)_**  
**_Twist it! (I want something unexpected! I don't want a lead up into a predictable end.)_**  
**_Pull it! (My leg, I mean. Give me some humor. Don't make it silly, but make it serious AND funny. This is not something a lot of people can pull off well, but please at least try. If you just can't, it's okay. This is the least important of the three.)_**

**_Word limit is 1500._**

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**Proper Behavior**

Zuko was upset, but that was nothing new.

Although, to tell the truth, Iroh couldn't help but wonder if the whole point of the exercise was just to further harass Zuko. It was possible that Admiral Zhao was behind all of this, and hoped that by waylaying Zuko with this additional responsibility, it would keep the Prince from continuing his pursuit of the Avatar. The conspiracy might even go all the way to the top, to the Fire Lord himself, as a plot by Ozai to keep his son from ever redeeming himself and returning home to claim his birthright.

Okay, maybe Zuko had the right to be a bit angry, this time. Although, Iroh was still a bit put out by way Zuko ranted at him on the deck of the ship, in front of the whole crew.

Normally, Iroh was willing to take Zuko's verbal abuse. The boy had a good reason to be dissatisfied with his life, and the emotional damage his father had done to him seemed designed to turn Zuko into an abusive person himself. Whenever the Prince got a good rant going, Iroh would simply stay quiet, and wait for Zuko to calm down and regret his actions. Sometimes Iroh had to subtly guide his nephew back to a reasonable emotional state, but Zuko was still a good boy at heart, and usually managed to calm down on his own. Eventually. It never took him more than a week.

Usually, however, Zuko reserved his worse tantrums for when he and his uncle were alone. To explode at Iroh in front of everyone, actively seeking to undermine his reputation with their fellow sailors, was too much.

His nephew had been so hurtful, Iroh was reminded of Azula.

That was never a good thing.

More than anything, Iroh wanted to go back to his nephew, to show him the error of his ways, or at least give the boy a cup of calming tea so that his education could be restarted. The boy still needed help in telling right from wrong, and Iroh was willing to give him whatever aid he needed. However, Iroh's own educational needs were currently standing in the way.

_Supposed_ educational needs.

"I have come," the Dragon of the West intoned. "Perhaps if we get started, and keep the pace brisk, we might satisfy my obligation in just this one session?"

The instructor crossed her arms in front of her and glared. "Your sentence was specifically listed as a minimum of five sessions, General. Part of the nature of the program is to observe, over time, the degree to which you internalize the lessons."

"But my nephew has been tasked with chasing the Avatar, and to come back here every week would-" He was cut off by a hostile motion from the instructor.

"General, you are a member of the Royal Family, and a respected former member of our military, so I would hope that you, of all people, would understand the importance of the Law. Especially the aspects of it that instruct us about fair treatment of our countrymen."

"June was actually born in the Earth Kingdom-"

"But she was still a legally registered bounty hunter in the Fire Nation colonies. Our laws protect her, including those that detail the proper treatment she can expect from men of the Fire Nation. For example, the way she described your groping could legally be considered an assault."

"I assure you, I know the difference between right and wrong."

The instructor actually smirked derisively at him. "That's what we're going to correct, General. Your first class in Sexual Harassment and Equality Awareness begins now."

**END**


	75. Day of Destiny

Winning Drabble Contest entry! The idea was to take a certain piece of music (search youtube for "Rastrelli Cello Quartett Piazzolla - Oblivion"), and make a fic for it in the following manner:

**_This time around, you are to listen to the song linked above and take your inspiration from that. Use the song as a soundtrack, acquire a mood from the song and use that, feel an emotion and run with it! I'm open to just about anything here, as long as you incorporate the song in some way, shape, or form. Keep it below 1,500 words. Make it in the Avatar Universe. Other than that, let the song guide you._**

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**Day of Destiny**

Ursa woke up on the morning of her wedding, told herself that she was happy, and believed.

The preparations had a kind of unreality to them. Maids came in and dressed her as always, but things were slightly different. The clothes were new, colored white to represent purity, and she wondered why the same color was also a symbol of death. Her hair was placed into a new style, which was odd, because what was the point of not looking like yourself when first seen by your husband? The style, though, was also practical, in that it would better accommodate the crown hairpiece that she would be receiving when she officially became a Princess of the Fire Nation.

Princess Ursa. Fantasy had become reality, and it sounded all the odder for it.

The wedding wouldn't be at the Palace, of course. She wouldn't see her new home until after it had become a certainty. Even in the Capitol, security was a concern, and for all that Prince Ozai was the lesser heir, he was still a popular and commanding figure in the elite society here.

In accordance with tradition, Ursa met her family and friends in her home's parlor, and the whole group formed a quiet parade. The eldest members were at the head, with a descending order; a young preteen girl who Ursa had tutored in the pipa-lute was at the tail. Ursa fell exactly in the middle, as mandated by old beliefs of luck. The line traveled through the Capital, passing by the palace (they all stopped to bow at its main gate), and meandering towards the Royal Fire Temple. They entered on the East side, and Ursa was taken by one of the servants to her place in the courtyard.

The High Sage stood atop a slight platform in the center of the dais. He spared her a glance as she settled at his left hand, but did not speak to Ursa. To occupy herself, she watched her guests stream into the courtyard. Her parents came up to her side to act as witnesses and give their approval. They smiled at her, and that made things a little better.

Soon enough, the groom arrived. He was led by a younger sage, and wearing the blood red most popular in the Fire Nation. Ursa herself felt a smile grow on her face. She had seen the prince before, though she had never before come to his attention, and he was very handsome. As the groom, he didn't have to wear anything as elaborate as Ursa's costume, and looked all the better for it. Even so, he himself apparently liked what he saw in her. He smiled at Ursa, and his eyes met hers without fear. His brother came up to stand at Ozai's side, as witness, as the rest of the guests save one walked into the courtyard.

When everyone was in place, they all bowed to the last empty place in front row of the audience. Observed by no one's eyes, the Fire Lord stepped into the courtyard and took the reserved spot. At his word, everyone else rose again.

Ozai glanced at Ursa once more, and then shifted his gaze forward to the High Sage. Ursa made herself do the same, but didn't hear any of the man's words. She was hyper-aware of the cream of the city's crop standing expectantly behind her, of a handsome and powerful young man standing at her side, of the High Sage of Fire standing before her, bonding Ursa forever to Ozai with a simple speech.

She felt so light, and so warm, and she believed that this was happiness of a new kind.

Ursa took refuge in the proceedings. Although she heard nothing, she had been trained to go through the motions like a dance, the speed increasing with her confidence. As the Sage dissembled, she and Ozai bowed to each other, and accepted with both their hands a single cup of Lily Wine. Ozai drank from it first, and then guided it towards Ursa. She sipped from the cup, her eyes never leaving the prince. The sage said something to Ozai, and in response, he kissed Ursa's forehead and rested his hands on her shoulders. Had she been royalty, and he a mere gentleman, the motions would have been reversed.

She accepted him by lowering her head and taking his hands in her own, and her willed happiness reached a crescendo.

His smile grew warmer, and it seemed to Ursa that the air around him did as well. That would explain why she seemed to feel so hot. The bonding complete, they turned to face the assembled guests, and bowed. Ursa heard none of their applause over the roaring in her ears.

She knew it was time for the next phase, and gratefully sank to her knees.

The Fire Lord stepped forward, and with a formal declaration, handed Ozai a flame-shaped crown of gold. Ozai bowed to his father, and took the crown to Ursa's waiting head. It stabbed into the fountain of hair that had been prepared for it, and her head easily bore the new weight. Ozai took Ursa's hand and brought her to her feet, and the assemblage bowed to their new Princess.

All was finished.

Ozai and Ursa moved as one, stepping with the rhythm of their synchronized heartbeats, moving in a circle through the courtyard, so that all the guests could see them living and traveling as one. Ursa was lost in the movement, in the fading glow of the sun in the sky, in her new husband's warmth and grace, and almost stumbled in surprise when they arrived at the Wedding Table.

Lanterns eased to life around them.

**END**


	76. Dance, My Darling

_This piece is a companion to a piece of art named, "Ambushed." It was done by deviantArt's daughterofthestars, and is really worth a look, especially for fans of Toph/Sokka._

_

* * *

_

**Dance, My Darling**

_"So, should I ask, or you?"_

_"What are you talking about, Sokka?"_

_"Dancing! We got music, we got a floor, you're here, I'm here, and neither one of us knows the first thing about it, so we should totally be out there in that crowd making fools of ourselves together. But, it won't work unless the right person asks first."_

_"Says who?"_

_"Oh, come on!"_

_"All right, all right. Well, usually the guy asks."_

_"So you want to do it."_

_"You know me so well, Shuffles. Now, shall we dance?"_

_"It t'would be my honor, milady!"_

Where's Katara? WHERE'S KATARA? Toph was blinder than ever, unable to concentrate long enough to even remember she could Earthbend, never mind use it to find the Waterbender. She didn't need it to find Sokka, though. He was in her arms, colder than he should be, skin clammy and scary. She could smell the blood- there was so much of it- but it was what she heard that was really terrifying her. Sokka was gasping for breath unevenly, each groaning exhalation pushed off beat by delirious ramblings. Come on, Sokka, this is no time for funny!

You're not dancing!

You're never going to dance again!

The vibrations of Katara's approach struck Toph like fists, and she was forcibly shoved away by the Waterbender. Toph didn't care- Fix him! Do the water thing! Get him his feet back! SHUT YOUR LYING FACE AND DO IT!

Toph crawled back over to the patient, and placed her hands on his sweaty head.

_"Woooooooo!"_

_"Go, Shuffles, go!"_

_"Ha! Big time finish!"_

_"That was fantastic! You looked great!"_

_"Thanks! You were... oh, come on, I'm trying to show you a good time, here."_

_"One way or another, I always get a good time out of you. We done here?"_

_"Done?"_

_"This next song is a slow one."_

_"Ah, little do you realize, this is where I sneak attack you."_

_"You can't sneak attack me if you announce it to me."_

_"Think again!"_

_"Sokka!"_

_"Relax, I've got you."_

_"Leggo."_

_"Just move to the music, Toph."_

Toph hated explosions, just as much as the Fire Nation seemed to love them. She had no idea what they looked like, but it seemed like they were designed solely to disrupt her senses. One CRACK was all it took to ruin her hearing, to turn the world's orderly vibrations into a meaningless cacophony, to knock her off her feet before she could summon her Earthbending.

One CRACK was all it took to take Sokka's legs off just below the knees.

He was still babbling, talking about being lighter than air as he pranced across the ballroom that existed only in his mind. His voice rose and fell as his ability to breathe came and went. Toph wanted to do something, anything to make him stop, and that was why it hurt so much when his voice trailed to silence and his heart stopped beating. It had to be why Toph hurt, because she was blind in more ways than one, and never realized that the bleeding boy in her arms had become her greatest vulnerability.

There was shouting going on around her, but Toph was oblivious. She sobbed.

She sobbed, and pounded Sokka's chest with all her strength.

_"This isn't so bad, is it?"_

_"You're holding me too close to you."_

_"I'm pretty sure that's the idea. Everyone else seems to be doing it."_

_"Well... maybe it isn't so bad."_

_"Victory!"_

_"That's what you think."_

_"GAH!"_

_"Who knew Earthbending was good for dancing, too?"_

_"Toph... Toph, can you let me up?"_

_"Isn't this what we're supposed to be doing? I think it's called a 'dip.' "_

_"Yeah, but the girl isn't supposed to dip the guy!"_

_"So then we're right on track?"_

_"Yeah. I guess so."_

_"You know, Sokka, you're pretty light on your feet for a Meathead."_

_"My feet have nothing on yours."_

_"Then we're right on track."_

Sokka had fallen asleep hours before, but Toph was still dangling from the cliff of wide-awake exhaustion. She sat next to his bedroll, inert as a rock, moving only to periodically check that Sokka was still breathing. It was the least she could do, after breaking down while Katara worked. The Waterbender had said that Toph had actually helped, that her pounding on Sokka's chest had kept him breathing long enough for Katara to bring him back.

Toph was too upset to tell, but she suspected Katara was lying to make her feel better. It would be just like the Waterbender to cover up her own turmoil by mothering Toph.

Sokka groaned and tried to sit up, and Toph was finally pulled from the echoing darkness of her own thoughts and into the real world. "Sokka?"

"Toph?" Another groan. "Hnm, feel awful."

"Katara said that you went into shock. You almost died."

"Mkay... She okay? Aang?"

"They're fine. They're resting. You really wore Katara out." Her breathing stopped, just for a moment. "Do you remember what happened? What we talked about before you went loopy?"

He was silent for so long that she thought he had gone back to sleep. Then he opened his eyes, and spoke clearly. "We were attacked."

"Yeah."

"Bombs."

"Yeah."

"Then... we danced?"

"That was last week." Her voice hitched. "You got hit."

Sokka stared at her, then lifted his blanket and looked underneath it. "Aw, dang. Aw..."

"Yeah."

They were both silent for a bit, after that. Toph laid her head down his chest, and his hands found her hair. He was the first to resume the conversation. "I guess I'm going to have to make new plans. Chiefs and hunters have to be able to stand and fight."

"Just like Earthbenders."

"I was never one of those."

"Yeah." She fought back tears. "I'm glad I got a chance to dance with you."

"You'll get more. Teo can show me some moves. Or maybe Ty Lee can teach me to dance on my hands."

She sat up, and looked with amazement at him. "How can you... now... ?"

"I suspect painkilling herbs are at work, but mostly because Katara's okay, and Aang's okay, and Zuko's out there somewhere doing okay, and you look like you need some Okayness yourself."

She laid back down on him. "Yeah."

"Don't worry. They missed my best feature."

"Your brain?"

As ever, he moved smoothly, dancing with a grace Toph didn't need to see. "Nope. My family."

**END**


	77. Cracking

_So, now that Maikka Week is over, I'm back to the Avatar Spirit Drabble Contest entries I've been stockpiling. This one failed on so many levels, I even considered not posting it. Ah well. At least I have a cool, popular new Avatar webcomic everyone can find linked in my profile._

_Criteria:_

**_Darkfics_**

Darkness- It's a darkfic, it should be dark. That doesn't mean over the top angst, in fact nothing can kill darkness faster than having it be so over the top I find himself laughing. (yes I am a horrible, horrible person) Sometimes, the slow, melancholy of despair can be more potent than the fires of trauma.

Reactions- How do the characters react to the darkness? I want them to feel realistic to the character. I am a great believer in Nurture over nature and that anyone has a breaking point, but if you have declaring that he wants blood for the blood spirit and is out to purge the world of the weak, you had better have a reallllllly amazing explanation. since you create, so any reaction can be "right" which makes it hard for me to judge. However, I don't like outright banning stuff, so if you have an OC, this requirement changes to convincing me that the OC is a full person, not a vehicle for the reaction you want.

Creativity. As always, new takes will be rewarded.

_I'll admit, I'm not much for Dark Fic. I've done some dark stuff in the past, but only because the ideas for those fics came first, and just wound up being dark in nature._**_  
_**

* * *

**Cracking**

"Sokka! You're back!"

Katara's warm body slammed into his, her arms wrapping joyfully over him. Her face landed in the soft fabric of his shirt, but quickly pulled away to gaze up at him with those powerful eyes she'd always possessed. Was it his lack of reaction that drew her gaze, or did the new blood-soaked quality of his clothes revolt her? "Sokka? What's wrong?"

He tried to speak, because he always answered his little sister, and found that he had no idea what to say.

_Armies rebuilt normal people into soldiers. To do that, they had to break you._

Sokka had three great loves in life- sleeping late, eating meat, and fooling around with his boomerang and club. Upon being accepted into the Earth Kingdom army, he was assigned to a recruit group and put through basic training, and quickly learned just how horrible his new life would be. Mornings began hours before the sun came up. Meals were limited to three instances of inadequate proportions, and the quality of the food had Sokka longing to wander off into the wilderness to hunt up some proper, unspoiled meat. He already knew how to fight with his own weapons, but the instructors insisted he learn the dao blade, and he spent whole days chopping and stabbing until his arms were numb. It didn't sound like much, but it was an effective formula for ruining Sokka's ability to think. He was always tired, always aching. When he slept, he dreamt of sword drills.

He also dreamt of his mother.

All the recruits came from tragic backgrounds. They had already been fighting the Fire Nation, defending their homes alongside their family, friends, and neighbors. They hadn't needed to join the army to help protect their livelihoods. Of course, the reason these men and women were now signing up for formal military service was because they no longer had homes to defend. In many cases, they no longer had anyone to stay by their side. As tale after tale of loss was revealed, Sokka found the memories of his mother's death coming back, escaping from behind the dark wall he had worked hard to maintain.

Sokka was breaking, and he hadn't even met the enemy yet.

Katara frowned. "You joined the Earth Kingdom armies? Why?"

"I didn't want to be like Aang." He looked over at the Avatar. "I'm sorry I got mad at you. I'm a runaway, too, now. I shouldn't have judged you like that."

Aang tried to wave away the apology. "It's okay." A frown worked his way onto his face, and his voice lowered. "Wait until you hear about my trying to learn Firebending."

Katara was still staring at her brother intently. "You left? Why? I mean, I'm glad, but..."

_Sokka hadn't expected battlefields to be so filthy._

In theory, he knew that fighting alongside Earthbenders would mean a lot of dust and dirt flying around. Fires and explosions and oily smokes would be the Fire Nation's contributions to the atmosphere. Blood, of course, would inevitably be present on any fighting ground. Yet, the Water Tribe boy hadn't quite been able to imagine how all those elements would come together. The result was mud everywhere, black and clingy, of a consistency that felt disturbingly unnatural.

Technically, Sokka's group wasn't fully trained yet. He still wasn't comfortable with his dao. The Fire Nation, however, was on the move, and their training camp was in its path. The newer soldiers were joined by veterans, the ragtag remnants of forces that had failed to stop the Firebenders at the last checkpoint. They were a mix of Earthbenders and Warriors, young and old, soldiers and mercenaries.

The battle started as an ambush, with the Earthbenders shaking away a screen of brittle rock to reveal an army ready to pounce on the Firebending invaders. One of Sokka's first lessons, though, had been that no plan survives contact with the enemy, and it certainly proved true with this battle. The initial fighting went well, if thuds and screams and flames and rocks were considered good things, and breaking the flesh and bones of the enemy were good things, and seeing your fellow soldiers get hurt and die were good things. (Sokka decided right there that they weren't.) After the field had been properly soiled, a new element was introduced. Some of the Firebenders were armed with a small machine, a backpack contraption with what looked like a pressurized bladder of liquid on it. Sokka didn't get a chance to really examine it, though, before the devices were put into use and began spewing a glue-like liquid that further fouled the soil and air.

Then one of the Firebenders lit the stuff up.

It burned.

It burned slowly, Sokka decided. That was the only way it could stay on fire for so long, even as it stuck to dirt and rock and people. Certainly, the Earthbenders who came into contact with it screamed for a long time, as the fire systematically burned every last bit of their skin. The ground, too, just kept burning, herding the Earth Kingdom forces towards what would quickly become their final resting place.

That's when Sokka got his idea.

He shouted for the Earthbenders to call up a sandstorm. His noise quickly attracted the attention of one of the commanders, who either saw merit in the idea or figured that they had nothing to lose. There wasn't any sand around, but there was enough loose dirt and gravel to fill the air, and with all the remaining Earthbenders working together, the storm became something close to a force of nature. No one had trouble breathing, though; the Earth Kingdom forces improvised masks before the sand began flying, and the Firebenders wore full faceplates on their helmets for exactly that reason.

What the storm did do was starve the fires, and push back the horrible slow-burning glue when it was spewed from its launchers.

Of course, the storm also impaired vision. Despite everyone's uniforms, they were all reduced to vague shadows amidst the flying debris, devoid of color or even human form. All anyone could do was pick a shadow, and attack as hard as they could.

Later, Sokka heard that this battle contained the most instances of friendly deaths of any the commanders had ever experienced. At least the Fire Nation soldiers had all been beaten.

Not all the Firebenders were dead at the end of the battle. Many were merely injured. The Earth Kingdom forces had no means of healing their broken bones and severed limbs, and they would be moving out soon to join up with another segment of the army. Prisoners, frankly, were a liability, and many cases, a quick death would be a mercy. So the Earthbenders summoned a small boulder each, went around to each Fire Nation soldier, and finished them off with a loud crack of stone against Earth, and the softer cracking of splintering bones.

No one said that mercy had to be painless.

Sokka couldn't shirk that duty. He was a soldier, and being uninjured, had to do a soldier's duty. He took his club and sword over to the nearest Firebender, and looked down at the man. His leg was broken, crumpled in several places, and he was sobbing with each breath. Hearing that sound, Sokka chose at that moment that he could never be a true soldier. He was a Hunter, and would be true to that legacy.

So Sokka took out his whalebone knife, slit the man's throat, and held his hand as he died. It was over quickly. The sobs and bubbling trailed away, and the only sounds were the bursts of cracking as the rest of the army went about their work.

Sokka walked away and set off to find his sister.

Looking at Katara now, Sokka wanted to put into words what he was feeling. He opened his mouth to speak, but something stopped him from catching his breath, from making any sound. So he lowered his head instead, and sobbed into his sister's shoulder. It took a while before he could stop, but he knew she understood completely. She was great that way, and always had been. Her tunic absorbed his tears, and clean feel of the moisture against his face was a comfort by itself.

Later, Sokka pushed the memories back behind the same wall as his mother, and never brought the experience up again.

**END**


	78. Kids These Days

**Kids These Days**

"All the sons and daughters,  
"Left lying in the waters.  
"Ashes, Ashes,  
"_We all rise up!_"

At the last line, the three little girls, standing in a circle and holding hands, raised their arms together and jumped as high as they could. Mai landed awkwardly and tumbled onto her backside, but didn't let go of Azula and Ty Lee's hands, so the other two girls were dragged to their knees. Neither one found this to be any great inconvenience; Ty Lee even giggled.

Princess Azula looked down at Mai and smirked. "Nice jumping, Mai."

Ty Lee nodded happily. "Yeah, we went really high!"

The princess threw a questioning look at Ty Lee, but the other was apparently serious. Mai just sighed and pulled her hands away so that she could get back up. As far as humiliations went, this wasn't so bad. It didn't involve her dress getting lit on fire (a favorite game of Azula, now that her Firebending was getting good), or doing something stupid in front of Azula's brother and mom, or doing one of the boring things her parents were always telling her to do. If this were the worst thing that happened to Mai all day, it would actually be quite pleasant.

Azula looked back and forth at her two friends and smiled. "Hey, guess what?"

"What?" Ty Lee supplied dutifully.

"My father heard me practicing that song yesterday, and he taught me what it really means."

"Wow," Ty Lee gasped. "I didn't know it meant anything. Your daddy is smart!"

Mai didn't look as impressed. Instead, she sighed. "Why were you practicing it? We all knew it from when we were babies."

Azula just rolled her eyes. "So that I would have it _perfect_ for today. Duh. So do you want to hear what Father said?" Two nods, one manic and one lethargic, answered her. "Well, then I suppose I can tell you. See, a long time ago, before Grandfather was born even, the Fire Nation wasn't as perfect as it was now. Some of the islands, you know, like Shu Jing, didn't listen to the Sages or do what the Fire Lord told them to. So when they got scolded, they had a tantrum and stopped working with the Home Islands, like doing trade, paying taxes, and stuff. So the Fire Lord took his army and went to make them behave. Some of the islands got scared and promised to be good, but some actually tried to _fight_ the Fire Lord. They called those fights the 'Final Rebellion' because the Fire Lord defeated them all, and had all the rebels killed even after they surrendered, and then left the bodies on the beaches instead of giving them proper cremation. Then he marched his army back through the rebels' hometowns, and burned them all to the ground. No one wanted to rebel again after all that."

Azula crossed her arms and smiled. "You two should already know about that from school. Do you remember the name of the Fire Lord who stopped the rebellion?"

Ty Lee tapped a finger against her chin and frowned. Then she closed her eyes and hummed tunelessly. Then she grabbed her head and growled, lips pulled back from grinding teeth. Finally, she opened her eyes again and grinned. "Nope!"

Mai yawned. "It was whatsisname, the one before Fire Lord Sozin."

Azula's nose wrinkled. "I guess that's close enough, but you really should study more, Mai. It's a pretty easy name."

"When? I'm always either playing with you or practicing my knives. I think the Fire Lord would like it better if I could kill all his enemies than if I know his grand-dad's name."

"...I guess that's logical."

"Wow," Ty Lee chimed in, "you're really smart, Mai!" The other two girls ignored her.

There was a silent moment after that, while Azula shifted her gaze up to the sun and worked her lips from side to side. "You know," she eventually came back, "we could be more efficient if we only played games that could teach us stuff, like 'All the Sons and Daughters.' That way, I could have fun, and you two would learn better."

"That's a great idea!" Ty Lee hopped to her feet in excitement. "Quick, we need to figure out which games have secret histories!" She began looking from side to side as if expecting to see clues somewhere in the garden around them.

Mai raised an eyebrow at this, but decided to let it go. "Actually, I know some games like that. Like when we play Shopping, and one person has to be the Earth Kingdom merchant who hides coins from the customers? That's kind of educational. Or when we pretend to explore the colonies and you make Zuko be the colony trash? That teaches us 'social studies.' And my Uncle said that we call it 'Water-Tribing' instead of something like 'Steal the Other Base's Flag' because Water Tribe raiders have _always_ tried to do that to us. That's history."

Azula nodded. "Exactly! Let's play the one where we shove Zuko to the ground! But you girls have to pay attention so that you learn properly."

Ty Lee hopped with excitement. "YAY I'M GONNA BE SMART!"

Azula and Mai traded glances, but held their tongues.

**END**


	79. The Chosen

_First runner-up in Avatar Spirit Dot Net's latest drabble contest. The challenge was to write a "Peggy Sue" fic. (Read: a fic in which a character goes back to relive a portion of their life. There's a fuller definition on TV Tropes) Criteria:__ Self-contained story__, Creativity__, Correct Grammar and Spelling._

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* * *

_

**The Chosen**

The first time through, he allied with his brother.

Ozai hadn't always known he was destined for greatness. He _had_ always thought well of himself, as befitted royalty, but with role models like his father and older brother running around, who wouldn't feel a little healthy inadequacy? Still, that all changed when Ozai was fifteen, on the day he first harnessed the power of lightning-bending. He was younger than both Iroh and Fire Lord Azulon had been, the first time he'd done it, and that realization gave Ozai an inkling that he might just be better than everyone else after all.

He dedicated himself to his training, both physically and mentally. He learned the ways of the court and the battlefield, of alliances and death duels. Always, he worked on his lightning. By the time his brother Iroh returned from Ba Sing Se, Ozai could generate the 'cold fire' faster than anyone alive (or even dead, in father's case). The price of that mastery was a certain sense of detachment that Ozai could no longer turn off at will, but he didn't consider that a liability at all.

On the contrary, it quickly became a benefit.

When Iroh arrived back at the palace, the older man was grief-stricken over the loss of his son. Ozai feigned sympathy, and made himself indispensable to his brother. Slowly, he began whispering of vengeance, and a return to greatness. Iroh was equally slow to accept such ideas, due to some set of mysterious scandalous experiences he had on the way home, but as the time came for Iroh to take up the crown of Fire Lord, his old sense of vision began reviving.

One thing could be said for Iroh. Fool that he was, once he dedicated himself to a mission, he put his all into it, and had a subtly effective style.

Even so, it all ended in ashes. On the day of the Comet, as the two brothers went out to incinerate the entire Earth Kingdom with their unmatched Firebending power, they were met by a young Air Nomad who claimed to be the Avatar, surrounded by old masters from across the world. The grumpy Waterbender was an unknown old man, but the Earthbender met descriptions of Mad King Bumi, and Jeong-Jeong and Piandao were of course well known to Ozai.

When it all ended, Iroh was dead, and Ozai stripped of his Firebending by some horrid magic of the Avatar's. He died forty years later, alone in a cell.

* * *

When Ozai awoke to find himself fifteen again, he was thoroughly unbalanced, but that did not keep him from re-discovering the lightning, nor from making many of the same mistakes.

It ended no better, the second time, nor the third, despite his best efforts. After the fourth, he realized that Iroh was never going to be strong enough to win.

* * *

Ozai had never been quite sure what to think about his wife. Descended from Avatar Roku, with the appropriate distant blood ties to the Royal Family, she should have been the strongest woman in the Fire Nation. Yet, she frequently disappointed Ozai in unexpected ways. The coddling way she treated their children was a perfect example; she just couldn't summon the proper sense of detachment required for greatness.

Still, Ozai didn't have many other choices, when it came to allies. She turned out to be a better killer than he expected, given the proper coaching and motivation, but wound up performing no better than Iroh at the end. That the Avatar had a different set of allies, this time, surprised Ozai. A strong Water Tribe Chief who couldn't bend, a bald but gray-bearded Earthbender with a deep voice and unconquerable spirit, and Admiral Zhao (of all people) united to stop both Ozai and his wife, and then the Avatar stripped them of their bending and locked them away on opposite ends of the Fire Nation.

* * *

He should have seen it sooner. Zuko was Ozai's spitting image, and so eager to please. All it took to wipe out that weak streak (undoubtedly inherited by his mother) was the right kind of attention. Even so, Zuko was never much of a Firebender; he never even managed to generate lightning before any of Comet arrivals, despite Ozai's best efforts.

Zuko always died, in the end. Even against the children the Avatar brought against him.

Good riddance.

* * *

Just as Zuko was Ozai's image with his mother's spirit, _Azula_ was Ursa's reflection with all the killer instinct that her father had been looking for. She was loyal, and powerful, and vicious, and _clever_. With Azula, after only a few tries, Ozai came closer than ever to winning.

She killed all of the Avatar's allies- the stupid Water Tribe boy who reminded Ozai far too much of 'Chief' Hakoda, the loud blind Earthbender, the self-righteous Waterbender girl, and _Zuko_.

Of all people.

Despite this, Ozai still couldn't win. The Avatar always defeated father and daughter, and took their bending away, except for the last time. The last time, Ozai had the Avatar at his mercy, injuring him too badly for the Airbender boy to even move out of the way of the final blow, but before he could strike, there was a powerful hit to his back, and a cold pain, and his daughter's ecstatic laughter.

Ozai gave up on Azula, after that.

* * *

No, in the end, the problem was clear. No matter how many times he went back to his fifteenth year, and rediscovered the lightning to his father and brother's amazement, he would never find the right combination of allies and actions that would give him the world.

In the end, it was obvious. Why had it taken Ozai so long to realize that he could only rely on himself?

Iroh, Ursa, and Zuko were all ignored; they would never be of any use. Azula became a tool, trained in a regime honed over multiple lifetimes, and then discarded before she could prove her unreliability.

Ozai went alone to burn the Earth Kingdom, and knew that victory was at hand.

The Avatar had come alone to face him.

Ozai couldn't help but smile. He had all the power in the world, and with no one to hold him back, he would surely triumph over this mere _boy_. This time, there would be no one to save him. The Last Airbender would finally fall.

His destiny was finally at hand!

* * *

Afterward, Ozai lay in his cell, once again robbed of his bending. It took many years of thought, but he finally realized the problem. After lifetimes beyond count, he couldn't help but accumulate a little of Iroh's brand of wisdom, and it led him to one inescapable conclusion. One conclusion born out by experiments beyond count.

_Ozai_ was the only common factor in all those failed ploys.

_He_ was the weak one.

_He_ was the _failure_.

When his life ended, that last time, it was followed only by oblivion.

**END**


	80. The Final Rest

**The Final Rest**

"A man needs his rest."

Even stranded in the middle of the Northern Ocean, shadowed by ancient icebergs, with no protection from the wind and snow but the clothes on his back, Iroh's heart warmed at the sight of Zuko laying himself down for a much needed sleep. The lad had been on a self-destructive campaign for the last few months, but Iroh took it as a hopeful beacon in the storm that Zuko had the strength to recline and rest when he really needed it. The older man half expected his nephew to risk life and limb in another attempt at capturing the Avatar, and Iroh truly had no idea what he would have done if the Prince had expressed a desire to once again infiltrate an ice fortress, filled with warriors, most of whom would be harboring anger over the loss of their princess and looking to relieve it on a perceived enemy. Yes, Zuko at least knew when it was wise to retreat. That already made him smarter than his father.

Iroh adjusted the sails of their little raft, and settled in for a long voyage.

The raft was bobbing along on the flowing sea, lost in a world devoid of color, when Iroh saw another reason why Zuko was better off in blissful unconsciousness. The battle against the Northern Water Tribe hadn't ended well, and bodies tended to float (especially since the navy switched to a new armor design that wouldn't sink). When the Ocean Spirit, using the fully empowered Avatar as its Waterbending conduit, had capsized the Fire Nation ships, the men aboard wouldn't have lasted long in the freezing waters.

Dark, frost-covered bodies floated everywhere. Black wreckages pierced the waters and moaned metallically in the wind.

Standing on the raft, Iroh bowed out of respect for the lives given in selfless service to their nation. He would have done more, but he was without any resource but his own self.

The scenery didn't change for hours. Icebergs continued to loom, and every so often, the prow of one of the larger Fire Nation ships would be sticking out of the water. The bodies always clustered around these monuments to defeat. The Incarnated Ocean Spirit hadn't journeyed very far from the Northern Water Tribe's city, from what Iroh had seen, but the effects of its tantrum were scattered far and wide. Iroh couldn't help but wonder how many he _couldn't_ see.

As they passed one such sunken vessel, no different from the rest, Iroh felt a presence. He turned around to see Lieutenant Jee sitting beside Zuko's still body. The man's skin was blue, and Iroh couldn't help but feel that Zuko was also looking unpleasantly pale as he slept. "Lieutenant. I'm sorry to see that you did not survive the battle. I had been hoping for your safety."

Jee's specter nodded. "I served, and did not die for any incompetence on my part. It could have been worse."

The air had gone still, and even colder.

Iroh's eyes narrowed reflexively. Jee did not profess to any need for vengeance, but the appearance of ghosts was never a good sign, in Iroh's experience. Granted, seeing dead people was not a _common_ occurrence in Iroh's life, but since his journey to the Spirit World, such phenomenon was not unknown. That Jee stayed by Zuko's side was worrisome. "I would think, then, that your soul would be at rest. Whatever your lack of political favor, I never heard anyone speak ill of your service or honor. Certainly, I considered you among the best of my fellows."

Jee's eyes flicked to the slumbering figure beside him. "Thank you, General. I'm more at rest for your regard. But I have one last duty. One last soul is being called to the Water. The boy will be able to get the rest he really needs."

Iroh inhaled sharply, and nearly began coughing at the frigidness of the air. "Zuko fought hard to survive the battle, and just barely escaped. I am taking him back to warm lands, to recover." The old Firebender began inching away from the boat's thin sail, towards the specter and the prince.

Jee's eyes were as cold as the air. Iroh caught the glittering of ice crystals in his mustache. "I'm sorry, General, but he's been Touched. The Ocean Spirit was preoccupied with Zhao, but Zuko was there. He was there when the Moon was slain, and didn't try to stop it."

"He wasn't," Iroh growled as his hands formed fists in obscuring sleeves, "conscious for Zhao's foolishness. Your sponsors would hold him accountable for not waking up on time?"

Jee turned to look out at the sea. Chunks of ice from a damaged iceberg bobbed in the water, soundlessly. "He lured the Avatar and his friends away from the Oasis. Zhao succeeded in his plan only thanks to Zuko's meddling. The Ocean demands that the proper price be paid. You've sailed long enough to know it can't be stopped."

"Jee," Iroh laughed bitterly, "I am known as a superstitious fool amongst most of the Fire Nation's leadership, but that doesn't mean I'm going to indulge every vengeful spirit whose path I cross! I helped Zuko get to the North Pole; should I drown myself now? Perhaps the Ocean Spirit will want words with the guards who weren't vigilant enough to catch Zuko? Or maybe one of the Avatar's friends should have stayed behind, just in case? If he hurries, the Ocean Spirit could catch them before they leave!"

Jee stayed quiet. He had a bit of a temper when he was alive, but something about being dead or frozen must have given him more control. "He's been called, General. I'm just following orders."

Zuko stirred in his sleep, pulling his limbs closer to his body for added warmth. Iroh knew that few enough Firebenders would have been able to survive this cold, never mind sleeping even semi-comfortably. It just went to show the degree that everyone underestimated the prince, and unjustly condemned him.

Everyone but his... _uncle_. Sometimes, no matter how often Zuko used his proper title, Iroh could not help but label himself as the boy's...

Iroh sighed. "Perhaps the Ocean Spirit would allow a trade, then. My life, for his. I may not have committed any crimes against the Ocean Spirit, at least that it recognizes, but no doubt my soul would be a powerful bargaining chip with the right Spirits."

Jee said nothing.

"Please." Iroh did not need to work to put the pleading tone in his voice. "I cannot lose another son..."

Jee nodded. "I am not empowered to bargain, but... you are a noble man, General. I will tell Zuko of this, afterward. It may be some comfort." He reached for the sleeping Prince.

Iroh, once known as the Dragon of the West, broke into motion. He went from trembling in place to lashing out with snapping strength and precise motion. His legs automatically slid into a stable stance, shaking the boat only slightly, and his fist launched out of his sleeve to spray a fountain of flames at the specter. The landscape all around briefly came alive with orange light, and Iroh's shout-like exhalation echoed across the water and off the walls of ice.

It did no good.

The flames flowed over Jee's armor like water over sealskin, lighting it up with the same intensity of sunlight on frost, and passed on into the empty air. Jee's color did not change, nor did he react in any way. He just waited for the flames to dissipate, and then placed a hand on Zuko. Water pulsed up from the sea to cover the raft where Zuko rested.

Iroh wanted to summon lightning, to blow away the space that this apparition inhabited, but doing so would likewise destroy Zuko. Iroh was completely at a loss.

Zuko floated, seemingly cozy, on the frigid water. Jee guided the bobbing body out over the open sea. The specter turned back to look at Iroh, and nodded in a kindly manner.

To ashes with it. Iroh swung his arms, and let the emotions in his heart polarize. He felt the separations grow heavy with energy.

Jee began quickly sinking below the water's surface, his hand resting on Zuko's shoulder.

Iroh continued the motion of the form, and felt electricity crackle at his fingertips.

Jee was submerged now, and Zuko began sinking with him. The prince stirred, and blinked his eyes in a panicked manner.

Iroh placed his focus on the still water where a dead man had just disappeared.

Zuko cried out, maybe for his uncle, maybe for his father.

Iroh let the lightning fly.

With a scream, Zuko plunged below the water.

The sea exploded with the fury of a thunderstorm.

The sight of a screaming Zuko disappearing into the blue-black depths hung in Iroh's view for moments after he awoke. He blinked to clear it, unsure if it was a true vision or the remnants of his mind. His hands found Zuko's warm, slumbering form before his eyes recovered.

Zuko was still there, sleeping contentedly. A dream. Or a vision. Either way...

Iroh shook Zuko gently, and his nephew quickly awoke. "F- Uncle?"

Iroh sighed happily. "It is your shift, Prince Zuko. I am getting too tired manning the sail, dozing off with bad dreams. Wake me in four hours?"

Zuko nodded with military discipline. "Of course, Uncle. Rest. We can both sleep more when we get back to Fire Nation territory." He slowly eased himself into a standing position. "Er... well, thank you for taking the first shift, Uncle. I needed a brief rest, but I'm ready to handle my share of the duties, now."

Iroh smiled. "I know, nephew." He patted Zuko's shoulder as they moved past each other. His form was warm beneath the white jumpsuit.

Iroh cleared his mind meditatively as he lay down to sleep. He didn't feel any unusual spirits or ghosts haunting their little raft. At least, none that were new. Maybe it was a dream after all. Iroh closed his eyes, and looked forward to returning to the comfortable old nightmares of years past.

**END**


	81. Just Not Meant To Be

**Just Not Meant To Be**

Six bodies were moving slowly across the ice plane, battered by wind and sprinkled with snow. It was debatable whether the most comfortable of them were the dead and now-frozen fish, or the dead and dragging tiger-seal. The other two contestants, Sokka and Katara of the Southern Water Tribe, certainly didn't consider themselves to be in the running.

"This is the worst hunting trip you've ever dragged me on."

"I didn't drag you! You invited yourself along! Girls aren't supposed to go on hunting trips, even sisters."

"Well, who was going to fix you up if you got yourself injured? You didn't even pack any bandages! I had to bring all my own supplies! And I caught my own fish! We never have enough fish in the village."

"Ah, who worries about that kind of stuff? I haven't gotten injured so far, and we won't need any fish once we slice up this tiger-seal. It's got to be way- hn- over two hundred pounds of pure, succulent _meat_."

"No injuries? So what happened to the vicious _two hundred pound_ tiger-seal that you said nearly bit your face off before you _bravely_ managed to spear it? You said it threw itself on top of you and nearly broke your ribs."

"But I killed it okay, no problem."

"You're insufferable."

"Yeah, well you're whiney! No man is going to take a whiney girl for a wife."

"Then I won't be a wife! Waterbenders are more valuable to the village than wives, anyway."

The only reply was a scoffing grunt. Sokka stopped walking for a second to once again hitch up the body of the tiger-seal that he had slung over his left shoulder, and then he got himself moving again, stomping forward deliberately before his sister could notice how stiffly he held himself. The head of the seal was dragging in the snow, leaving a furrow that made it look like a man with a tail was hiking across the South Pole.

Katara shifted the spears in her arms, fish dangling from lines tied around the blades. She used a newly freed hand to brush a pile of snow off her hooded head. "It's really starting to come down."

"We should cover a little more ground before stopping for the night."

Katara frowned and jogged to catch up with her brother. "You're just saying that to argue with me!"

"Oh ho ho, trust me, I don't need to say things _just_ to argue with you. I can say _anything_ to you and get an argument. 'Good morning, Katara.' 'No it isn't, it's too cold, Sokka!' 'This fish tastes good, Katara!' 'It's the worst fish I've ever eaten, Sokka!' 'I'm a competent hunter, Katara!' 'That tiger seal was probably old and dying anyway, Sokka!' 'The sky is blue, Katara.' 'That's the _water_, Sokka!' Right?"

"I do n- I mean... You... I... _Argh! You are insufferable!_"

Sokka just smiled to himself.

The walking continued, as did the occasional traded griping, along with the snowing. The precipitation was growing more intense, driven by increasingly cold and hard winds. Aside from the snowy gusts setting the fish dancing on their lines again, Katara wasn't terribly inconvenienced by this, but Sokka was slowing as he tromped through loose snow. Katara didn't take conscious notice of the way her brother's body was shielding her from the worst of the winds, or that his footprints and dragging prey were clearing an easy path for her; such considerations were frequent enough to be lost in the general noise of life. However, the Waterbender did have an instinctual sense for when her brother needed her care, and that sense was frantically waving for her attention. "Are you okay? I can take a turn carrying the tiger-seal..."

"No!" Sokka didn't turn around, the main reason being that snow and snot had frozen on his face to make showing any expressions an unpleasant proposition. "I speared it! I'll carry it! Guys are stronger than girls, so I'm more naturally suited for it."

Katara felt a smirk growing on her mostly numb face. "I could say something about that, but I think it'll be humiliating enough when I have to carry both you _and_ the tiger-seal back home."

"Katara!"

The traveling continued on. The sun was lower now, blocked by the peaks of the ice mountains in the distance, although its indirect light still illuminated the crystalline plains. "Hey, Katara, look!" Sokka waved a hand covered in a thick mitten. "We can take a shortcut!"

The Waterbender girl squinted through the snow along the vector her brother's hand was vaguely indicating. "Where? Oh, that ice valley? Sokka, that doesn't look safe."

"Safe? Of course it's safe! It's a thousand pounds of ice! It's not going anywhere in any hurry!"

"Gran-Gran always said to watch out for ice structures in the wind. Even the big ones have weak tips and outcroppings that get piled with snow and break off."

"Oh, Gran-Gran just worries too much. The men used to take these paths all the time."

"No one said 'the men' were smart."

"No one said you get to have an opinion, _woman_!"

"No one said I couldn't, _blockhead_!"

"No one said... uh... that... you could. So there."

"Smooth."

"Anyway, I'm the one lugging the three hundred pound tiger-seal, so that makes me the undisputed ruler of our expedition. And I say it will be good to get out of this wind. That valley will take us to the Crags, and we can set up camp there for the night." Before his sister could offer any argument, Sokka began hiking in the discussed direction.

Katara could have taken any number of actions here, but for all her feminine common sense, Sokka _had_ explored these areas more thoroughly than she, and he could be just as stubborn as herself, when he wanted to. This was especially true when he was in an especially bad mood, as was becoming apparent. Moreover, the time spent trying to convince him could perhaps be better used just moving along before dark. The sun was at its most mobile, this time of the year, and night would fall quickly.

Katara sighed and chased after her brother.

Up close, the 'valley' seemed more like a trench, in some places only wide-enough for a tall man like their dad's friend Bato to lay stretched from head-to-toe. The walls of ice, however, rose high enough that their tops were lost to sight. As Katara stared up at them with worry, a chunk of snow tumbled down to land just a few feet away from her. "Sokka, I really don't think this is a good idea."

"Oh, stop your nagging. I'm going to get enough of that when I'm married."

That took Katara's attention off their surroundings. "Ha! You're never going to get married. Even if there are any woman our age in one of the other villages, no girl with any self-confidence would put up with a loudmouth like you."

Sokka didn't bother turning around as he took up the argument. "Good thing _you're_ not going to get married, either. No hunter with any pride would want a woman who thinks she can run his life. You can just stay in my tent and cook for me, and I'll take care of you."

"Your tent? We're living in _Dad's_ tent! And I don't need anyone to take care of me! I can do just fine on my own! Go ahead and cook for yourself, if I'm so annoying!"

"Fine! You won't get any tiger-seal, and I'll turn it into jerky myself and _do a better job than you ever could_!" The echo of Sokka's bluff rebounded throughout the trench, rising towards the open sky. The ice walls didn't so much as move, but the snow accumulated on their tops began sounding a quiet growl of disturbing promise. Sokka and Katara looked at each other, the argument forgotten, and having come to a silent accord, broke out into a run. Katara passed by her brother easily, as he refused to let go of his tiger-seal prize.

Neither was fast enough.

An avalanche of snow exploded into the valley, turning the air between the walls into a fiercer storm than was raging on the open planes. The siblings were buried in a sea of white, and after one last rumble of satisfaction, the icy corridor returned to quiet peacefulness.

It was Katara, of course, who shattered it.

No kind of bender is particularly safe to have around in a panic, especially when they're surrounded by their relevant element. It's not that Waterbenders stood out in any way, but Katara herself tended towards disturbing shows of strength when in a disturbed state of mind. The snow above exploded, and she threw herself out of the snow pile with frantic gasps for breath. She had barely ascertained that she was uninjured before she realized that there was another matter at stake.

Sokka.

She threw herself _back_ at the snow, dividing her efforts inefficiently between digging with her hands and attempting to move the snow via bending with wild gesticulations of her arms. Things came to a brief halt when she unexpectedly discovered the slack-jawed head of a very familiar but unattractive tiger-seal. There may have been a cowardly shriek involved, but with no one around to hear it, Katara felt no need to preserve the memory. Fortunately, with the tiger-seal as a guide, she was able to quickly find her brother's body. He wasn't blue, or choking, or bleeding, which was a good start. "Sokka?"

He didn't move.

"Sokka?"

Still no response.

"_SOKKA!_"

"Hn, loud."

With one last cry of, "Sokka!" Katara happily threw her arms around her brother.

"...hi, Katara. We got hit with something, didn't we?"

"I could tell you about how I was right, and that icy mountains are dangerous in the snow, but you don't look like you want to hear about that now."

"You would be correct. About the last part, I mean. Hey, where's my tiger-seal?" More digging commenced, after which the dead prey was extricated. A short argument followed, leading to a longer bout of digging which was finally finished when Katara's fish were recovered.

Gathering them up with the rest of her supplies, Katara ventured another opinion. "We should make camp for the night soon. How about after we get out of this valley?"

"But I wanted to get to the..." Sokka saw the look on his sister's face, and remembered that he was standing with an untrained Waterbender in a trench of ice surrounded a snowstorm. "Okay, as soon as we clear the valley."

Hours later, the tiger-seal and fish were buried next to a round tent. Snow was accumulating on top of it, providing structure and insulation. Within, the siblings huddled together under a blanket, sharing heat in a lifelong tradition. They were silent for a while, before Sokka turned to look at his sister, her face so close to his. "You can live in my tent if you want, when we're older. You _are_ a big help, but don't have to if you don't want to."

Katara smiled. "I like your tent. But we need to figure out how to get rid of the smell."

**END**


	82. If It's All the Same to You

_Answer to the following prompt: "Death: **Realism, ****Characters, ****Emotions**" The prompt was actually much longer on each of those points, but I've decided most readers of this series don't care all that much. Save space, anyway._

_In more interesting news, this is a quasi-sequel to "Han and Death: A Remix" which means this is another crossover._

* * *

**If It's All the Same to You**

"Hello? Anyone?"

HELLO.

"Who's there?"

'WHO' IS NOT THE CORRECT QUESTION.

"It's very dark down here."

WELL, WE ARE UNDER QUITE A BIT OF OCEAN. YOU DON'T NEED REFLECTED LIGHT IN ORDER TO SEE, ANYMORE, BUT YOU'RE PROBABLY NOT YET USED TO LOOKING PAST ALL THIS WATER.

"Wait... I was fighting Zuko... is he here?"

OH, NO. YOU ACTUALLY SAW TO THAT YOURSELF.

"Yes... he reached out. But... I was being taken by the Ocean Spirit... oh."

YES.

"It had its revenge. For an accomplishment that was taken back from me. What a waste."

I'M AFRAID THAT YOUR OPINION IS A MINORITY VIEW.

"What? What are you talking about?"

I SUPPOSE, AS LONG AS WE HAVE A MOMENT, I CAN TRY TO TEACH YOU SOMETHING. WHILE YOU WERE BUSY FIGHTING WITH YOUR LITTLE FRIEND, OTHERS WERE AT WORK TRYING TO FIX THE MESS YOU MADE OF THINGS. THE PRINCESS YUE GAVE UP HER LIFE TO BECOME THE NEW MOON SPIRIT.

"How is that possible? That's ridiculous."

DO YOU REALLY WANT A FULL EXPLANATION OF THE MECHANICS INVOLVED? IT TOOK ME QUITE A WHILE- THAT IS TO SAY, MANY MOMENTS OF INFINITELY SMALL INCREMENTS OF UNTIME- TO WORK IT ALL OUT, AND FRANKLY, I'M NOT SURE I GOT IT ALL RIGHT. ACTS LIKE YOURS MAKING THE NECESSARY PROCEDURES AKIN TO JUGGLING, A HOBBY I HAD FOR A WHILE. I SUPPOSE THAT IS WHY THEY SAY YOU THREATENED THE BALANCE. ALL THE BALLS WOULD DROP, IF I MAY BE FORGIVEN FOR INDLUGING IN METAPHOR.

"Just... never mind. So the Water Tribe has a new moon spirit. As I said, I waste."

TO YOU, PERHAPS. OTHERS CONSIDER YOUR EFFORTS TO BE QUITE EFFECTIVE AT WHAT THEY SAW AS YOUR PRIMARY PURPOSE FOR BEING.

"Stop speaking in riddles."

I'M NOT VERY GOOD AT RIDDLES. THEY SAW YOU AS AN ENEMEY, ADMIRAL ZHAO. THEY SAW YOU AS A FORCE OF EVIL. YOU ARE, NOT TO PUT TOO FINE A POINT ON IT, AN ADVERSARY. THEY SAW YOUR EFFORTS AS A SPITEFUL AND IGNORANT ATTEMPT TO UNBALANCE THE WORLD TO THE POINT OF DISASTER, AND LATER, AS MURDER. EVEN FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, I MUST ADMIT THAT I'M NOT SURE WHAT YOU WERE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH.

"I was-"

IF THE PHRASE 'GLORY TO THE FIRE NATION' IS GOING TO BE INVOLVED, I'D RATHER YOU NOT SAY IT, IF IT'S ALL THE SAME TO YOU. GLORY IS A HUMAN INVENTION, AND ANOTHER THING I AM NOT VERY GOOD AT.

"That... that wasn't the only reason. I was supposed to be greater than the Spirits. So many people, at war for so long, fighting and dying for the sake of nations that forget them within a lifetime. I was always taught that service was the greatest ideal, but shouldn't there be more? Service should beget reward. I chose, for mine, eternal infamy. Who else had ever slain a Spirit? Who else could?"

AH, HYPOTHETICALS. I SEE THEM OFTEN, IN MY LINE OF WORK.

"Just who are you, anyway?"

WHO ELSE COULD I BE? I AM THE LONE VOICE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN. I AM THE FINAL AUDIENCE. I AM THE END OF CAKE. I AM, BUT SOMEDAY, I WILL NOT.

"Oh. You're..."

YES.

"Have you ever... was it truly possible? Can someone ever be remembered forever?"

OF COURSE.

"Heh. Then it wasn't a complete waste. At least I tried. And I came so close."

AH, YOU MISUNDERSTAND ME. YOU DID NOT HAVE TO TRY. _I_ REMEMBER. I REMEMBER YOU ALL. I WATCH THE SANDS FALL, AND I AWAIT THE TIME. I GIVE THIS SERVICE TO YOU ALL. THERE WILL COME A TIME, THE LAST TIME, WHEN THIS TASK WILL BE COMPLETE, AND THE FINAL TASK WILL BE AT HAND. THERE WILL BE AN END TO MEMORY, EVEN FOR THOSE WHO HAVE SLAIN AND UNBALANCED AND ETCHED THEIR WAY INTO FLEETING HISTORY. ONLY MEMORY WILL BE LEFT, AND ONLY I WILL RETAIN IT.

SO, YOU SEE, YOU COULD NEVER BE ANYTHING BUT THE SAME AS EVERYONE ELSE. I DO HOPE YOU TAKE THIS AS A COMFORT.

"...I don't."

GOOD.

**END**


	83. Working It Off

_Been a while, yes? I'm nearing the completion of my big project, and the Avatar Spirit Dot Net Drabble contest had some delays, but the latter is finally back. The theme this time is "Redemption" and the judge was looking for heavy character-focus.  
_

_

* * *

_

**Working It Off**

Every night, Mai dreamed. It was always the same nightmare.

She was in a hole, beyond light and fresh air. The shadows wrapped around her host, the monster. Its insect body blended with the dark of the cavern, but its faces somehow stood out against the artificial night. The monster had more faces than Mai could count, but it only showed one at a time.

As always, it began with a face of white paint.

Hello, Mai, the monster said.

Hello, Monster, Mai replied with an empty expression.

How was your day? the monster asked.

Boring, Mai replied, as she did every night, the word and inflection always the same.

Tell me, the monster commanded kindly. Then it took on the face of a komodo rhino and roared at her.

My whole morning was spent in meetings with diplomats from the Outer Islands, Mai began with a flat voice. She went on to list each of the attendees, beginning with the representative from Shu Jing, and gave a full rundown of the negotiations. She spoke without tone the whole time, finishing with, Although the goal was to bring the islands voluntarily back under formal Fire Nation rule, no conclusions were reached during this, the third day of conferences. The diplomats all promised to send messages back to their masters, and return to negotiations with me as soon as possible.

Your husband must trust you greatly, to give you such responsibilities, the monster noted with the bony face of a starved child.

Mai nodded, her expression still blank, and continued her litany.

In the afternoon, I attended a formal social gathering of the Capital's most prominent citizens. Most of the conversation was superficial, about the trivialities of everyone's lives, and the atmosphere was light and serene. I gave my full attention to all of the most popular figures, as is expected of a proper Royal Consort, and refrained from disturbing anyone with my own talk. They served biscuits, there. None of my friends were present.

The monster grinned with the face of a barbarian king, teeth filed to points, and said, It sounds like a vapid experience, but Ty Lee would have made things better, if she had not left in search of atonement.

Very vapid, Mai whispered, and then paused for a moment. I had dinner alone, because Zuko was away on Seijin Island, dedicating the new temple there. To keep myself occupied, I read the latest intelligence reports while I ate, and afterward I met with my agents to personally give them their latest surveillance instructions. By the time I finished, I realized it was midnight, so I went to bed without practicing my knives.

So diligently, the monster sang with the face of an aged beauty, do you stand between your husband and his enemies.

I love him, Mai confirmed with an impassive visage.

Perhaps he will return tomorrow.

Perhaps.

The monster's face returned to the mask-like white paint, and he smiled at Mai as he spoke again. As ever, you have my sympathies, my dear. Your crimes during the war were not so great as to merit this. I offer you the gift of rest, the gift of deliverance from the Kingdom of Torment that you have constructed for yourself. You need but remember how to smile.

Mai bowed, lowering her face away from the monster to stare at the darkness below her, and spoke affectionately, Thank you, but I would rather settle accounts over the long term, and perhaps enjoy a moment of peace once the debt is paid.

I will always be here for you, the monster whispered, and I will always love you.

Thank you.

Once the dream was over, Mai awoke with the dawn, the haunting mostly forgotten. She dressed and prepared for a full day of meetings and negotiations and gossip, her face constant and unmoving. She considered scheduling time later in the day to smile, but decided against it. Maybe in a few years.

**END**


	84. Ozai: Prince of Love

**Ozai: Prince of Love**

Just because it was a foregone conclusion, that didn't mean that Ozai couldn't still glorify in his victory.

A month after he turned sixteen, Ozai was told by his mother, the Lady Ilah, that he had been betrothed to Ursa of Yukuefumei. It was explained that the marriage was significant for various reasons, both political and personal. The Outer Islands had, over the course of the War with the Earth Kingdom, drifted into a kind of sovereignty, with some of the more obscure islands no longer even bothering to send tax tributes to the Fire Lord. Yukuefumei was a cultural leader amongst the Outers, even boasting a Noble presence in its denizens, and by joining a prominent member to the Royal Family, was declaring allegiance to the Fire Lord and reminding the other islands of their true loyalty. This, it was explained to Ozai, was his father's canny and subtle way of reestablishing control over the Outers, without wasting any resources that could better be applied towards the war.

Ozai hardly cared. The Outer Islands would bow to the Burning Throne, or be dealt with after the Earth Kingdom had been broken and harnessed.

The other major reason Ursa was considered worthy of a Prince of the Fire Nation was her lineage. Her grandfather was none other than Avatar Roku, and while both Sozin and Azulon had begun a policy of downplaying the Avatar's significance in Fire Nation history (and its future), there was no denying the _power_ commanded by such a Bender. Perhaps, if a descendent of the Avatar were married to a member of the Royal Family, all of whom were known to be mighty Firebenders in their own right, the offspring would be _even stronger yet_. This didn't even get into the possibilities offered by mingling the chi energies of the two families, and what that might achieve. It was a worthy experiment, certainly.

It's not like Ozai's children would serve any other real purpose, with Iroh already expecting an heir.

Despite the implications, Ozai found this prospect interesting. If it worked, he had _everything_ to gain, and nothing really to lose (that he could think of, anyway). Surely, if Azul- Father were interested enough to arrange the experiment in the first place, he would be especially pleased if Ozai's heirs turned out to be successes. Iroh might be the darling conquering general, but what was guile compared to _power_, to a Fire Lord?

This Ursa might even be a worthy ally in her own right. Some companionship would be nice.

So it was that Ozai decided to fully support the betrothal, and bring Ursa into his family as a loyal and proactive wife. However, personal devotion was always more reliable than mere Law, so Ozai resolved to _woo_ this Ursa of Yukuefumei, to make her adore and revere and treasure and love him. After all, he was attractive and wily; what more could a woman want?

* * *

"Greetings, Father, my Fire Lord. First, I would like to formally offer my gratitude for the betrothal you have seen fit to arrange for me. I understand the ideas and purposes behind it, and I am honored to serve you in such a manner, and feel..."

Azulon tuned Prince Ozai out as the young man droned on. Really, the kid was quite annoying, always playing the toady in hopes that it would win him more importance and power. And Ozai wondered why Iroh was the favored heir; what kind of a Fire Lord would a professional suck-up make? Anyone who relied on flattery and fortune to win favor would never learn what was necessary to lead effectively. It was better to _be_ the best, rather than merely good enough and excessively loud about it.

"Prince Ozai, cut to the chase."

The young man nodded and offered a slight bow. "I have come to you with another request, but one that I feel ultimately serves you. I ask that the Lady Ursa of Yukuefumei be brought here, to the Capital, as soon as possible. While the plans for the marriage are proceeding, I feel it best to be allowed to properly woo the girl, so that she will enter into the union with the same enthusiasm for the Greater Glory of the Royal Family than I myself possess. It would allow-"

"Very well, Prince Ozai, I see your point. But have you considered that perhaps the girl would _prefer_ additional time in her home before leaving it forever?"

Ozai blinked. "Of course, Father, but what are any of our individual needs, compared to the greater benefit of the Fire Nation? We must all think of-"

"I get the idea." Azulon lifted one hand to massage his skull; Prince Ozai had a knack for giving him headaches. "I will issue the order that Lady Ursa be sent here to learn the ways of the Capital before her wedding."

It took another five minutes for Prince Ozai to finish bowing.

* * *

Ursa arrived two weeks later, and Ozai wasted no time in composing a formal invitation for a meeting. He sent his most reliable personal servant to deliver it, and carry back a reply. Granted, since the mansion in question was directly across from the palace itself, it would have been easy enough to simply walk over himself, but Ozai wanted to do this _right_. What would a girl think of a prince who did his own dirty work? Better for her to think he was focused on what was _really_ important, Fire and Power. What girl would want a weakling for a husband?

The servant bowed as he walked into Ozai's room. "Lady Ursa was delighted to receive you invitation-"

"YES!"

"-but regrets that she cannot meet with you today. She needs to settle in, after her journey."

Ozai sunk back into his seat. Refusing an invitation from a Prince of the Fire Nation? The girl was either insane, suicidal, or more powerful than he had ever suspected.

He would have to handle this personally.

* * *

Ozai himself, dressed in his most resplendent robes, his hair newly oiled and arranged, stood at the doorstep to Ursa's temporary home. A servant, a young teenager, answered the door. "I," Ozai growled, "am here for the Lady Ursa."

The servant fled. Good. She had some sense. Ozai followed her through the open door.

He hadn't been waiting long in the sitting room when Ursa appeared. Ozai detected her presence before she had even entered the room, the soft grace of her movements betrayed by a subtle warmth. He spun to face his fiancé for the first time, his expression crafted to project sternness and strength.

It was _completely_ undermined by his jaw dropping as soon as he laid eyes on Ursa.

"Prince Ozai, you honor me with your visit. Your desire for my company is very flattering, but I'm afraid that I must defer the opportunity for now. My mother made me promise that I would write her as soon as I arrived in the Capital, and she worries so much. Perhaps the Royal Family could lend me a hawk, so that news of my safe arrival would reach her quicker? Thank you so much. I look forward to joining your family, and meeting with you later."

It was then that Ozai realized he had been led straight out the mansion's front door. It closed softly behind him.

Well, ashes.

* * *

"It was... _unsettling_! Her appearance- her very presence- robbed me of intelligence and ability!"

Cadet Candidate Zhao resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He may have been a little older than his fellow former student from the Royal Fire Academy for Boys, but it simply would not do to show even the slightest bit of disrespect to a Prince of the Fire Nation. He spoke gingerly. "Your highness, you... uh... have not had much experience with women, so perhaps it's merely an issue of-"

"Think, Zhao. Think carefully how you want to continue that statement."

Zhao did so. Surely, kissing up to Prince Iroh might be easier, but Cadet Candidate Zhao had an eye for up-and-comers, and Ozai definitely had a winner's drive. It was that same instinct that had led Zhao to Admiral Jeong-Jeong, who the cadet candidate looked forward to studying under next month. Being a friend to Ozai would pay off in the long run, Zhao was sure of it. "I meant no disrespect, my prince. I merely meant that, just like with any endeavor, commanding a woman takes training. You wouldn't try to command a warship, having merely seen one from afar, would you?"

Ozai stroked his chin, and the small amount of hair growth it had accumulated, as he considered that advice. Zhao resisted the urge to smile. That should settle Ozai down, and allow them to get back to Firebending training. Admiral Jeong-Jeong was by all accounts a demanding teacher, and Zhao wanted to be ready to-

"Excellent point, Zhao!" Ozai boomed, standing up. "I need more information about Ursa, so I must _observe_ and _study_ her! And, to maintain an advantage, I need to know _her_ better than she knows _me_! That's what they taught us in the academy, isn't it?"

"Um, well, yes, but-"

"So I must spy on Ursa. And _you'll_ help me, of course."

Well. So much for training.

* * *

Ozai wobbled where he stood. "Steady, Zhao. If you mess this up, my life could be in danger! And my father will be _most_ displeased if you're complicit in the death of a Prince of the Fire Nation!"

Below him- literally, for Ozai was standing on Zhao's shoulders- the cadet candidate grumbled something under his breath about watching his voice. That was a good point, actually. This mission depended on absolute secrecy. What would people think if a Prince of the Fire Nation were caught below a local girl's bedroom window? Granted, those thoughts would likely be absolutely correct, but no one said the truth wasn't treasonous.

Ursa's bedroom balcony was within reach.

Zhao took a halting step forward, and Ozai grabbed the railing with both arms, steadying himself. He held himself motionless, and listened. He thought he detected the sound of a feminine voice, humming softly. It wasn't a tune he recognized, so it probably came from Ursa's home island. Perhaps he could win her attention by asking to be taught the words...

Ozai's eyes rose above the balcony railing, and he peered into the bedroom at the figure within.

A servant girl- the young one who had answered the door before- looked over from where she was polishing a full-length mirror, let her eyes grow wide, and screamed.

Ozai instinctively let go of the railing to assume a proper Firebending stance, but said stance unfortunately called for a widening of his legs that worked a lot better on stable ground than it did on the shoulders of another man. Predictably, Ozai and Zhao tumble to the ground together.

When they extricated themselves from their undignified heap, Zhao looked to Ozai. "What now, my prince?"

Inside, the dratted servant girl was still screaming. "Tactical retreat, Zhao. Tactical retreat. Negative jing at its finest."

* * *

There was no better cure for anger and frustration than a good, intense Firebending sparring session. Ozai had just knocked Zhao to the floor with for the sixth time in a row- in this instance, with a leaping scissor kick that sent a wave of fire at the target's head- when Ursa stepped onto the sidelines of the arena. Ozai was so distracted by her that he nearly forgot to send another fireball in Zhao's direction to make sure the other young man stayed on the ground.

Ozai turned to face his betrothed. On the horizon, the sun began to set.

The Lady from Yukuefumei smiled and bowed at the waist. "My servant claimed she had quite a scare, earlier. When she was cleaning. In my _bedroom_."

Ozai made a face. "I'm sure I would know nothing about that. I don't usually pay attention to servants."

Ursa just stared. "Well... I'm sorry to have bothered you, Prince Ozai. Perhaps we can meet again, in a formal- supervised- setting." Her hands were clasped in her sleeves, but the movement of the fabric betrayed nervous fidgeting. "I will be honest with you, Prince Ozai. Leaving home, to come marry a man I never met before... a _Prince_ of the Fire Nation... I apologize if my behavior has been frustrating, but... I will do my duty. I will do the honorable thing. No matter what." She turned-

"I'm sorry."

Ursa turned back.

Ozai wondered what had made him say that, But the look on Ursa's face made it more than worth it. "I... I understand that my father arranged this marriage, for very good reasons, but... I would be pleased if you... _liked_ me. I certainly hold you in regard, and would like to value you even more as time goes on. That is what has driven my actions. If I have made this more difficult for you... I... regret that. I just want to know more about you, so that I can make you love me."

"_Make_ me?" Ursa quirked an eyebrow, but her voice held amusement. "Prince Ozai, we on the Outer Islands cannot be _made_ to do anything. Not to a good end, anyway. It would be so much better for everyone if we _wanted_ to have loyalty to the Fire Lord, if we _wanted_ to enter into a union of friendship and proper decorum. Do you hear what I say?"

Ah, the girl understood subtlety, to a measure. "Yes, I hear. I think I have much to learn from you, aside from how to treat women."

She smiled. "Oh, _much_ more than that." Her eyes focused down at his bare chest. "And the other way around, of course."

After she left, Ozai indulged in a leap that sent wings of flame towards the sky. "YES! I'm! On! Fire!"

Still on the ground, Zhao indulged a good, long rolling of his eyes.

**END**


	85. Innocuous

_On my LiveJournal (loopy777 there, too), I'm taking prompts for Mai/Aang, so you'll be seeing a few fics with the pairing this week. This one is from LavanyaSix: "Post-War. There's a penny-dreadful making the rounds that describes, in graphic detail, a salacious love affair between Avatar Aang and Royal Consort Mai."_

* * *

**Innocuous**

To be fair, it _was_ a unique take on the old rumors.

The whole movement started with Pu On Tim's comedic play, 'The Boy in the Iceberg,' in which (amidst what critics dubbed "a nonsensical jumble of what we can only assume to be related events, featuring a single group of characters, that nevertheless fails to show any sign of what we in the business call a story") there was a scene in which Katara the Waterbender and Prince-in-Exile Zuko had a shallow romantic liaison while trapped in a cave together. The scene itself had no impact on the rest of the play, lacked even a hint of salaciousness, and was really nothing more than a quick throwaway gag, but something about it captivated the imagination of audiences throughout the Fire Nation like nothing else had in years.

Then Zuko became Fire Lord, and his policies made him popular with both the Fire Nation's common class and anyone who had been antagonized by his father's regime (estimated to be about 80% of the nonmilitary population). All this, combined with a loosening of the sedition laws, created a perfect storm of literary possibility, soon fulfilled in a new genre of romance that would someday be described by historians as "cheap pornography of Fire Lord Zuko seducing Katara of the Southern Water Tribe that fails to show any sign of what we in the business call cultural merit." A hundred years after Fire Lord Zuko's reign ended, a graduate student would write a thesis about how the plethora of this kind of story marked a turning point in the level of repression in Fire Nation culture, and she would afterward be denied her doctorate and banned from Ba Sing Se University.

Outside the Fire Nation, this fad would go largely unnoticed, even after it transitioned into a storytelling formula that had Zuko dally with all manner of real, mythological, contemporary, and historical female personalities. Only one book, marketed as being of the same genre despite would should have been major disqualifying characteristics, managed to achieve any kind of international popularity.

It didn't even come with any woodcarvings.

* * *

Ty Lee's letter only read, "Have you seen it yet?" The rest of the page was given over to, of all things, a sketch of Avatar Aang. Mai didn't understand at all, and that worried her; the less sense Ty Lee made, the more dangerous the situation was likely to be.

At least, if she was going to have to deal with a problem, Mai had plenty of resources to throw at it. Being the Royal Consort, wife to the reigning Fire Lord, had its perks (beyond the Fire Lord himself, of course). Handlers were contacted, spies were put into play, and the lines of information were opened and directed straight to the Royal Palace. In three hours, Mai had an answer.

It came from the High Society Rumor Specialist, or as Mai thought of her, the Gossipmonger. It came in the form of cheap book, with no woodcarvings.

Mai spent all afternoon reading it. She had to admit, it had better writing than similar pieces, and if she were the type to enjoy such things, she might have even been aroused by the more graphic descriptions. It was almost like reading poetry, except without any consistent meter or rhyme scheme. The main concept for the story was rather unique, if completely out of character, but the author had put a lot of effort into making it sound plausible. Aside from the main issue, the details of the characters' lives and personalities were quite accurate (at least as far as any member of the public would know), and there were several rather clever links to current events.

If people were stupid enough to write whole books speculating about the illicit sex lives of public figures, Mai was at least satisfied that the one centering on herself was better quality than any of the hundreds about her husband.

With that, she stuffed the book onto one of the dustier shelves in her personal library, and forgot about it. How much trouble could it be?

* * *

"Oh, did you read that book I lent you last week?"

"I did! It was rather... hm hm hm!"

"Oh, _yes_!"

"Do you think... ?"

"Oh, I don't... well... it would explain..."

"I _had_ always wondered about that."

"And..."

"Hm, yes, much more plausible than the official explanation."

"And the poor souls, betrayed by their spouses like that!"

"You mean the Fire Lord... and _her_... ?"

"Oh, it must be. Why else would _everyone_ be writing about it?"

"Oh, that poor girl. The poor boy!"

"At least they have each other."

"Every day when they're in the same nation, by the sound of things."

"Hm hm hm!"

* * *

"What's that?"

Aang glanced up at Katara. He didn't need to, since her question couldn't be more straight forward, but even after all this time together, he still enjoyed stealing glimpses of her face at every opportunity. The Avatar smiled as he held out the book in his hands. "One of the ladies back in the village gave this to me just before I hopped on Appa. She said she really enjoyed it, and thought I should have a copy."

"Oh, that's nice." Katara started to squint at the cover to read the title, but then quickly looked back up. "Wait, it wasn't the young one with the big hair, was it?"

"Yeah, actually. Why?"

Katara's face scrunched into a scowl, but Aang didn't think it made her any less beautiful. "That woman is a _pervert_."

"But she seemed so nice..."

"Yeah. Well. You didn't hear her in the bathhouse. I was in a private tub while she was in one of the public ones with her friends, and the _way_ they were talking about you... ugh." The Waterbender turned back in Appa's saddle to stare at the sky. "I don't care about anything she gave you."

"Okay. It's up to you." Aang opened the tome and began reading. "Hey, it's about _me_! Neat! I'm... in the Fire Nation... and Zuko- he's in here, too- is dealing with a rebellion as Fire Lord. Hey, I think it was the one with General Hao... okay, they got it right that Zuko went to lead the attack... oh, but they think Mai stayed behind. That's not right, she went with Zuko for that invasion." The Avatar was silent for a while. "Oh, I guess the story is about me and Mai both."

There was another long moment before he spoke again. "Oh. It's about me and Mai _both_."

The tone of his voice caught Katara's attention. "What are you reading there?"

Pale, Aang handed the book up to her.

* * *

"I've heard that name before."

"Oh, yes, he wrote that book on the creation of the Fire Nation's ironclads."

"Ah, _him_. That was a well-done book, although I think it would have read a little better if it hadn't been compressed so much. I know authors these days are slaves to their publishing contracts, but such a story could have easily been twice as long and... well, you know, you've read it."

"Yeah. I'm surprised he's moved into the romance genre."

"Well, I guess he goes where history takes him."

"Oh, you think... this is... _real_?"

"Well, I couldn't spot anything that wasn't true. And considering his past works, all dramatized retellings of historical events..."

"Huh. So the rumors about the Avatar's wife..."

"You just can't trust the Water Tribes. They were our allies during the war, but their loyalties shift like... well, the tides."

"Huh."

"Yeah."

"...I have to say, I have a new appreciation for the Lady Mai."

"Yeah. The drawings I've seen were never particularly flattering, but the descriptions in this thing..."

"_Yeah_."

* * *

Suki bought six copies, because every printer in the Earth Kingdom gave it a different cover. She heard that the copies printed in the Fire Nation had an _illustrated_ cover, and that there was even a Premium Format available to Fire Nobles with woodcarvings.

It took Sokka a month to read it, because he had to wait until Suki was asleep.

* * *

"Okay, anything else to report?"

"We've picked up a few rumors about Fire Lord Zuko."

"Oh?"

"You sound surprised."

"Well, it's a first. So far, he's completely lived up to his public image."

"If I may be frank, your majesty, _no man_ lives up to his public image. We are all but human, and strive ever to deny it in front of others."

"How poetic. I shall have to ponder that."

"In the meantime, there are two complimentary rumors spreading. The first confirms the peasant speculation about the Fire Lord and the Avatar's wife."

"Oh, that's _terrible_. They were all quite nice. I hate to think how the situation will develop."

"Well, that's the other rumor. It seems that the Avatar and the Royal Consort have found a certain amount of comfort together."

"...is that normal? I find it to be fairly... disturbing to contemplate."

"If it is, your majesty, most people at least take great pains to hide such a thing."

"Hm, indeed. Are you sure this isn't all just baseless gossip? Those books..."

"Well, it seems that a new book has been published, something of an expose. It's sensationalist, to be sure, but certain facts match information that our intelligence sources took great pains to uncover, and given the correlation, well, what are the odds that some work-for-hire author managed to guess the truth?"

"It's all so _terrible_."

"Yes, your majesty."

* * *

Mai stepped into their bedroom, and found the _Aang book_ on the floor right in front of the doorway. Well, that explained the loud thump. "What part did you get up to?"

"_That thing is nothing but trash_!"

"Of course." Mai smoothly bent over and picked it up, making sure the cover wasn't damaged. "Still, I thought the writing was better than some of the ones about you and Katara."

"_Those books are trash too_!"

"Zuko, calm down." The Fire Lord's face was almost as red as the scar over his left eye. Mai glided over to her husband, and put her hands on his shoulders. "It's just one book, and I appreciate that someone wants to make fun of all the morons who actually write books about 'Fire Lady Katara's Bedroom Adventures.' He's kind of like my champion, in a way."

Zuko snorted, and Mai felt the temperature of his skin spike. "The way I remember it, champions typically didn't have such extensive knowledge of their Lady's... their Lady's..." His skin grew a shade redder.

Mai indulged in one of her light, rare laughs. "Maybe not in the history books they gave to Princes of the Fire Nation, no."

Zuko looked his wife in the eyes, and frowned. "Mai, are you a _pervert_?"

* * *

"I want to contract a sequel. This book is selling like _fire flakes_, and we need to strike while the flakes are hot!"

"I... I'm not interested. I hate writing... those kinds of scenes. I needed the money, but I'm currently in the middle of a biography of Piandao the Swordsman, been working on it for, well, years, and I was hoping to finish-"

"It will be about Katara's brother, Sokka, and that Bei Fong girl, the Earthbender who taught the Avatar."

"...they, they never had a romance. None of my research about the Avatar ever indicated-"

"I'm willing to double your rate."

"..."

"Listen, not that I don't respect you, but you need to understand something. You're a writer. Good for you. You even have some skill. But, really, don't delude yourself. You're nothing special, the stuff you want to write about doesn't sell, and you're far from the easiest author on my payroll to work with. You'll want to take these opportunities when they come up, right?"

"...right."

"Great. For this one, I'm thinking we should commission some woodcarvings."

* * *

Toph tried, many times, to get someone to read it to her, but everyone she paid wound up disappearing overnight. _With_ the book. She had purchased sixteen copies before she got back to the Fire Nation.

The sequel was even better.

* * *

It took a lot to evoke Mai's pity. In all the time she allowed herself to be Azula's friend and agent, she sympathized with the Princess' victims exactly four times. In a whole decade.

So after an hour of Aang blushing whenever he so much as glanced at Mai, the Royal Consort sighed and spoke as gently as she could manage. She kept her voice low so that no one else at the little gathering would realize what they were talking about. "It's all right, you know. It's just a stupid book."

The Avatar's blush became as crimson as the armor of the Imperial Guard. "I... know... uh..."

"Just... pretend I'm a boy or something."

He threw her an odd look, but at least his blush started fading. "How exactly is that supposed to help?"

"I don't know, but it was the first thing that came to mind." She gave him her least predatory smirk.

He smiled in return. "I guess I just... we know each other, but not... I mean, everyone else in this room is like my family."

Mai absently pulled a blade out of her sleeve and began spinning it around a finger. "So you're saying that if you really thought of me as a friend, instead of a girl, you'd be more comfortable."

"Yeah."

She thought about that. "All right. Yeah. I guess I'll be your friend. If it will make you feel better."

His smile grew absurdly large. "Great!"

"Fair warning, though," Mai said a little louder. "My bum is no where near as nice as the book describes."

The Avatar's face grew scarlet again.

Everyone in the room turned to stare.

Zuko leveled an accusatory finger. "My wife is a _pervert_!"

Mai shrugged at Aang. "Fair warning about that, too."

**END**


	86. The Specialist

**The Specialist**

"Ah, and so we meet again. Sooner than I expected, at that."

The voice floated out of the darkness, and hung in the air for a chilling moment. Then the screaming face of a monster burst out of the shadows and rushed at Avatar Aang's face. The young man kept complete mastery of himself, and didn't so much as react to the cheap tactic. "Greetings, Koh."

The Spirit's face shifted to what Aang considered its default, a human visage painted like an actor of the classic theatre. "I sense challenge in you, Avatar. You have not come for my help this time, but neither have you come in the form with the most reason to seek my unbinding."

"I cannot seek justice as Aang?"

"Justice?" The face shifted to that of a dour old man and laughed. "You humans think you know justice, and pretend it a concept you invented for yourselves. Yet when it comes to paying the price of your crimes," the face changed again as the Spirit spoke, the hair darkening and growing, the wrinkles smoothing as the shape of the face shrunk and tapered, "you resist with your full power and obsess on avenging yourselves no matter how impossible."

The face the Spirit wore was the face of the woman Ummi, taken to punish her husband, the Avatar Kuruk.

Aang's own countenance was stiller than stone. "We all have our place and part in the universe, and can only act according to balance. I do not challenge you, or your justice. I actually came to offer you a gift."

"Oh, and what might that be?" Koh took a new face, a komodo rhino with cracked horns, and roared at Aang merely for the exercise.

"I bring you a friend. I bring you justice. I bring you self-inflicted destruction." The dramatic words did not so much as move Aang out of his stiff posture.

Koh's voice grew impossibly smooth and enticing. "I don't see a weapon in your hands, Avatar."

"My weapon has been waiting in the shadows all this time. Mai, please, show yourself."

She did so.

Koh swept over to examine her, his facing casually reforming into that of the old Spider Lord. He twitched forward and back, taking the girl in from every possible angle, the compound eyes glistening in the low light.

Mai just stared back. "Okay, Aang, you win. This _is_ pretty interesting." Her voice, although low and without melody, nevertheless lacked the deadness that the Avatar had temporarily affected. "I owe you a gold piece."

"Hello, child," Koh hissed.

"What's up, monster?"

"Do I frighten you?"

"A little, yeah."

"You cannot hide it from me."

"I know."

"Yet you try."

"Actually, I'm not."

"No?"

"No. This is my scared face."

"Congratulations. Not many can withstand me."

"Yay. See my happy triumphant face?"

"You taunt me, child."

Mai leaned over to catch Aang's flat gaze. "We have a smart one, here." Her tone was light, and her posture casually elegant, but her face had not moved from its human nothingness.

Koh swirled back over to the Avatar, reverting to its painted face. "Is something wrong with her?"

"That is a complicated question. But she is a good person, and my friend."

Koh screamed at Aang with the face of a blue demon. "_Remove this insult from my domain_!"

"Not an insult. A gift. You've never had a friend, one who could allow him or herself to feel around you. They either hid their true selves from you, as I do, or you harvested them for what you saw as a moment of weakness. Mai is neither of those. She is perfectly herself, but completely immune to you."

Koh said nothing.

"I must, once again, be going. Thank you for your hospitality," Aang intoned.

Mai waved. "See you in my dreams, monster."

She followed Aang out of the cave, yawning without expression. Koh glared at her back until she was swallowed by darkness.

* * *

Back in the real world, the bodies of Aang and Mai opened their eyes and stretched out of identical lotus positions. The Avatar let out a relieved breath and turned a sympathetic smile at the woman beside him. "Thank you. If past experience is anything to go by, and all the Avatars from Kuruk onwards have paid _a lot_ of attention to Koh, he won't be able to get over you. He'll keep coming after you, and only you, until one of you is lost."

Mai nodded expressionlessly. "No problem. I can handle him. He can spend all the strength he wants, he won't break me. Once he's worn himself into a pathetic little bug, I'll step on him. Should be fun."

Aang studied her for long moments. "Maybe I shouldn't have brought you into this."

"I wanted to help."

"Yeah. I'm still not sure why."

"Everyone I know has already helped fix the world." She rubbed at one eye. "I might as well do what I can to help fix the other one."

The Avatar put a hand on her shoulder, a friendly gesture carefully planned to avoid the knives she wore beneath her clothes. She ignored it for a while, but Aang's strength was greater than Koh's. Mai's shields wore away, and the tears began falling while her body shivered. He held her, not bothering to look at her face.

It was, of course, perfectly composed.

**END**


	87. Best Day Ever

_This was a gift fic for Omoni. Check out her stories if you like fanfics with interesting ideas and good treatment of our favorite ATLA characters._

* * *

**Best Day Ever**

_"Assault? You bet your hideous yellow-green robes it was an assault. Twenty-five knives worth. And he's lucky it wasn't more. No one touches me without written approval."_

- Excerpt from the Deposition of The Accused

* * *

"The good news is that I have experience with Chin's court system, and a perfect trial record," Sokka began.

"Also," Suki put in, a little too smoothly, "I'm an expert on the local culture, so we won't have to worry about any little misunderstandings this time."

Sokka crossed his arms and glared at the (off duty) Kyoshi Warrior. "It was just that _one_, and it wound up not being a big deal. If there were _any_ problems, it was with Aang. First he mixed up all the evidence that I _painstakingly_ uncovered, and then he confessed to the crime! Well, Kyoshi did, but Aang made her."

Suki eyed Sokka and gave him one of those placating smiles that he frequently brought out of her. "And the charges were still dropped in the end." She turned back to her 'client.' "So, really, you don't have anything to worry about. The two of us will coordinate everything for you, Aang has promised to speak on your behalf, and if we can get you remanded to Zuko's custody... well, we win!"

Mai just stared at the pair. "You know, my old set of friends would have just given me the jailbreak I asked for. Azula was good at that kind of thing." She reached into her sleeve for a blade to play with, remembered that all of her weapons had been confiscated during her arrest, and awkwardly put her hands back on her lap. "You couldn't even steal my blades back."

Sokka's eyes narrowed. "But Azula tried to kill you," he said with a pointed finger.

Suki nodded sagely. "Trade-offs."

Mai sighed.

* * *

In the Shrine Theater, Katara and Toph took their seats in the front row. The trial wouldn't begin for a while, but neither girl felt much like enjoying the Avatar Day festivities now, and if they had to wait around, they might as well get good seats. They sat in silence for a long moment.

It was Toph, of course, who spoke first. "I actually kind of feel sorry for Mai."

Katara looked over in mild surprise. "Really?"

"Yeah. I mean, she's a little wussy for getting so worked about being in a crowd, but I can kind of understand how she feels about that. I'm not crazy about all that noise, and there's the vibrations of so many people stomping around, and I _hate_fireworks, so... yeah, I can really understand why she freaked out. She doesn't get out much, and we all know how colors scare her."

Katara felt herself nodding. "When you put it that way, I guess it was a natural reaction. For her. But... _still_, bringing the _knives_ out..."

"Hey," Toph laughed, "compared to what _I_ would have done if that guy grabbed my waist and tried to push a raw dough ball in my face? Crazy Guy got off easy with a few cuts and a ruined robe."

Katara couldn't help but smile, picturing Chin's town square erupting into a ballistic earthquake. "That's true. That's _very_ true. So, do you think she'll get off okay?"

"Zuko and Twinkletoes are all over it. They've been talking to the mayor about it since she was arrested."

"Yeah," Katara sighed. "I'm worried, too."

* * *

Suki quietly slipped into the conference room, and took a seat next to Zuko. The Fire Lord let his attention shift over to the (off duty) Kyoshi Warrior. "How is she?" he whispered.

Suki glanced at the rest of the table, where the village council looked like they were badgering Aang. "Sokka's coaching her about her testimony."

"And?"

"And she's sighing a lot."

"Okay," Zuko breathed in relief. "She's doing fine, then."

"How far have you guys gotten?"

"They agreed that the First Lesser Wheel would be used unless seven-eighths of the audience votes for the Wheel of Violent Punishments. Providing Mai isn't unanimously voted to be Not Guilty, of course. Now we're negotiating the makeup of each wheel. From what I can tell, they're more enthusiastic about punishments than they can actually fit onto each wheel, so they like to swap them out regularly for more variety. Aang just talked them into removing '10 Lashings' from the Violent wheel, and so once we get 'Bad Sunburn' taken off, it will be more like the Wheel of Mild Physical Annoyances."

"Nice. What are you bargaining with?"

"We were thinking of offering a Guilty plea. We have a good case for Temporary Insanity, but if we give them the opportunity to cut to 'the good part,' then they'll probably give us the sunburn penalty."

Suki frowned. "They you'll lose your chance at the First Lesser Wheel."

"We will?"

"Yeah, here in Chin, anyone too weak to protest the charges is considered to be more deserving of a bad punishment. If they brought up that deal, they're trying to trick you."

Zuko's face hardened, and Suki was reminded of the way he looked when he attacked her home as an agent of his father. "Got it." He leaned over to whisper to Aang.

The negotiations got a little more heated after that, but didn't seem to be speeding up any. Suki was just considering sneaking back out to check on Sokka and/or Mai when she realized that one of the Councilmen was leering at her. "What?"

"I said that if the Avatar and the Fire Lord are reluctant to enter a Guilty plea, perhaps it would sound better coming from you, young lady. You're _very _pretty."

Aang looked pained. Zuko just looked embarrassed to actually be in the same room as these people.

Suki lightly smacked her own forehead. "I'll just pretend I left the room before you said that. Kyoshi Island really has gone to war for less, and that would just be too much trouble with the Avatar sitting right here. See you."

She heard Aang take up the point as the door closed behind her. "So, in exchange for protecting you from the sworn vengeance of the Kyoshi Warriors, perhaps we can take 'Bad Sunburn' off the table..."

* * *

"So. Mai. You ready? You got your story down? You remember all my strategic tips? You good to go?"

"Sokka, if you don't stop massaging my shoulders, I will make you my first priority when I get my knives back."

The Water Tribe Warrior pulled his hands back as though burned. "Right. Sorry. Okay, time to go out there. Don't be nervous."

Mai sighed. "I'm not."

"I know," Sokka insisted with a convulsive nod. "But I tend to get over-excited about this kind of thing."

"Shut up," Mai offered, and then walked out to the center of the amphitheater.

The crowd stared down at her, while her friends leaned forward in the front row and offered signs and expressions ranging from terrified hope to bored indifference. (Good to know she could always count on Toph to keep a cool head.) Behind her, two different Wheels of Punishment stood ready, guarded by a uniformed man with a staff and a face so dour even Mai felt outclassed.

The mayor of this stupid little village- Chin, she thought she recalled, after some obscure conqueror- stepped forward from behind the dour man with a flourish, and began speaking in his grating, high-pitched voice. "We all enjoy Avatar Day, back from the days when we burned the Avatar in effigy, to today when we celebrate Avatar Aang's dramatic rescue of our village from the demonic 'Rough Rhinos.' We are the envy of the world in our celebratory attitudes, drawing visitors from Kyoshi Island, the great city of Gaolin, and even as far as the Fire Nation and Water Tribes. But _this_ woman, with her anti-celebration agenda, sought to disrupt our party by bringing weapons and _assaulting _one of our greatest kneaders of the Unfried Dough Treats. The evil she wrought must be made up to us, and shall, through the public punishment she deserves. And so I leave it in the people's hands."

He stepped back.

Mai stepped forward.

She eyed the crowd one more time, taking in their ugly robes, their stupid hats, and the many rather malformed faces. She took a deep breath, and spoke louder than she ever did (except for when she was yelled at Zuko back during that rather annoying trip to the beach early in their relationship). "You're all nuts, this is a stupid town, and what kind of a freak grabs a foreign stranger anyway! I'm glad I did it, and I'd do it again." Then she held up both her hands and made a gesture that would have killed her mother if she saw. "Smiling!"

In the front row, Sokka deflated. "Why don't they ever listen to me?" he mumbled.

* * *

The vote was clear. Mai was declared guilty, and made to spin the Wheel of Punishment. With an easy flick of her wrist, she set it into motion. She very precisely targeted 'Community Service as Administered by Local Fire Lord.' The wheel spun with the speed of a thrown knife, settling slowly onto the final punishment. It approached a stop right where Mai wanted it… and then passed it by.

She missed.

"Oil," the dour man declared.

* * *

"Well, that wasn't so bad," Suki said, after looking Mai over.

"It could have been a lot worse," Zuko allowed, reluctantly. "Katara, can't you help her with that?"

"I can't bend oil." The Waterbender shrugged helplessly. "It won't even wash off easily, being so thick."

"At least it wasn't _cold_ oil," Aang said thoughtfully. "I mean, boiling oil is bad, but what if it were really cold, too? Slightly warm oil was probably for the best."

Sokka looked intrigued by that idea. "How cold does oil have to get before it freezes? It boils hotter than water does, right?"

Aang shrugged.

Lying on the grass near where everyone else was sitting, Toph gave an annoyed growl. "I'm bored. Are we ready to leave yet?"

"After Mai's bath," Zuko declared.

"Speaking of which," Mai growled from her position at the center of attention, "why are you all still sitting around staring at me?"

No one spoke. Finally, Sokka decided to take the plunge. "Honestly, you're the most entertaining thing I ever saw in this village. Want to go get arrested again?"

Mai, dripping greasy, sludge-like oil, looked at her friends, and the still celebrating village down the road, and sighed. She'd be _charred_ if she admitted that the day turned out a lot more interesting than she had even hoped.

**END**


	88. The Infinite Center

_Here we have another losing Avatar Spirit Drabble Contest entry. The theme was "Missed Opportunities" but the most interesting requirement was to "write this drabble focusing on only one color, but never tell me the color is red or use the word 'red' (or crimson, rosy, etc.) This will forces you to be descriptive by paying attention to objects, feelings, and people. For instance, tell me about how Ty Lee tugged at her cute circus pants while blushing. See how I never used the word 'pink'? "_

* * *

**The Infinite Center**

To most, the world was no emptier for the loss of the Air Nomads. These people had a narrow vision, seeing only the feathery clouds that hovered above their heads, bringing rain and mists and, most often of all, filtered light. Their towns and cities stood near growing vegetation, because even in the war to end all wars, people had to eat.

For the few who looked at the open skies, who lived in the places between the settlements, the world had become a void.

Pathik, honored as Guru, sunk deeper into meditation and looked at the shape of the clouds.

They were heavy clouds, as the world had become much heavier since the Comet showed its light. Lands that shined brightly in its wake had now fallen dead. Bones littered the ground, and ashes rose on the winds. The clouds grew, and choked out the sky behind them. The center of the rainy swirl was the darkest part of all.

There was less and less room every day, for those who lived in the places between the places.

The eye of Pathik's mind was focused on the central vortex. Its circular shape was betrayed by forks of lighting, reaching out like the collapsing skeletons of unfinished towers. The light reflected in the clouds, adding flesh to the bones of the lightning, turning the vortex into a star. It was an evil star, with an event horizon in its center.

The points formed a compass.

Pathik hesitated in the center of the swirl, unsure which of the four points to chase. He was guided only by a vision, of a memory-to-be featuring himself and a young boy who wore the last of the Nomad Arrows. The scene around was the stone of one of the Air Temples, but now all of them looked like they were made of the same dirty clouds. North was South was East was West. All were dead, all were empty, and all were forgotten by all but the man people called Guru.

It had become a colder world, for the people who once had friends between friends, a network of shared love.

Which direction to choose? Which point of the star? Which lightning fork would take Pathik on the proper path? If he chose wrong, he would wait too long for the Avatar to come. Evil was growing like the storm clouds, massing and expanding, and if Pathik waited for too long, not even a wind as strong as the Avatar could push the storm away. The storm would be too big, and the wind too weak, before the light of the comet bled through the clouds again.

The sooner he found the Avatar, the better. The more he could teach to the boy, the more the Avatar could accomplish.

Which direction to choose?

In his last communication, Gyatso had said that his Aang, his beloved boy, was being sent to the Eastern Air Temple. Had the boy gone? He was missing from the world now, the wind that had carried him now lost in the swirl of the storm. Perhaps the boy had run East, or would go there when he returned?

Yet, Aang's past was in the South.

East or South, the future or the past, the clear skies or the storm. Lightning once again flared on the axes of the storm, and the compass points stabbed into each horizon.

Maybe the North? The boy had run, and perhaps the familiar, in either the past or the future, was too much for him. Or would he be consumed by vengeance, and go straight to the Fire Nation, in the West?

North, South, East, or West.

Four elements, all one storm.

Pathik had to choose.

He had to choose right, or be too late. Even if the flash of the lightning had not yet appeared, the air would excite, and the heavy clouds would form in the sky. Pathik had to be there, to teach, before the clouds could begin to surround the Avatar, to begin dragging him into the swirl of the event horizon.

The spaces in between the places were too empty to home to find him there.

East. That was the where the sun rose. The Guru would wait in the East.

**END**


	89. The Big Cheese

**The Challenge:** To produce good fanfic for the increasingly popular Korra/Yue romantic pairing, despite Korra herself being a mystery.

**Prompt 1:** ASN's TyLuko4Ever asked for "Journey to the Moon"

* * *

**The Big Cheese**

The Sky Above is the playground of the Spirits. It is where the greatest of them ascend to discover new planes of existence, where they leave behind the shackles of the physical world to enjoy a state of pure energy. It is easy, in the darkness between the Storied Stars, to forget the petty machinations of Humanity. As they grow and fight and wither and die, it is all too natural to think them no different from the animals they claim dominion over.

_Usually_.

A metal sphere, the stylized wave patterns of the Water Tribes shaped into its hull, hurtled through the void and smacked to a halt on the lunar surface of the Moon. The force of the sudden stop very nearly flipped the pod around into a roll, but at the last second, its weight was enough to pull it back into place. It settled into stillness with a hollow ringing.

A hatch popped open on the side, and a streak of blue and brown and AWESOME emerged to traverse the surface of the Moon.

"Woooooooooooooooo!" the blur yelled into the eternal night. "Wooooooooooooo!"

After a few minutes, the blur finally settled into the shape of a pony-tailed teenage girl. Although she was standing still, her bare muscular arms wouldn't stop pumping upwards into the void. "I did it!_ Slush yeah!_"

She turned in place, searching the nebula-stained sky, and halted when she spotted the Earth rising on the horizon. An accusing finger rushed out to point at it. "They said it wasn't possible! They said Steampunk technology couldn't fly in space! They said Avatars are too Fantasy to have a Sci-Fi adventure! Well, they can _suck** my ICICLE**_! Avatar Korra: slush yeah!"

She gave another victory lap around her space capsule, throwing out a few more, "Woos!" for the sheer joy of it.

Eventually, that grew old. She slowed into a jog, and then an easy amble, before her heavy boots rested flat on the Moon's surface. "Now what?"

The silence of space was Korra's only answer.

"Well, that's hardly fair. I didn't come all this way to sit around in the dark. Anyone there?"

No one claimed that honor.

"Huh. Guess I'll just start lighting things on fire, then. That's always fun."

At that point, a shimmering human figure coalesced in front of the Avatar. The ghost-life being was similar in features to Korra, except her hair was as white as newfallen snow. "Do you think you could keep it down?" she said. "It's a new moon tonight, and I was hoping to catch up on my sleep."

Korra grinned and leveled an accusatory finger at the ghost girl. "Aliens! I have discovered extraterrestrial life!"

The ghost raised an incorporeal hand to massage the incorporeal temples of her incorporeal head. "I'm a Spirit. Aliens are too sci-fi for this franchise."

"Aw. I wanted to meet a Moon Man."

"I guess a Moon Maiden will have to do. I'm Yue, very pleased to meet you. Thank you for stopping by, have a nice trip back."

"Back?" Korra's face fell. She ran a hand over her ponytail. "I came all this way just for a few minutes? Maybe we could have some fun before I go? Are you a bender? You can teach me an awesome ancient Spirit Bending attack! Or, you could reveal some secrets that Man Was Not Meant to Know. Just a few; I can handle them, 'cause I'm a chick. Not a man. Whatever the little brats back home say."

"Secrets?" Yue considered that, her face settling into a confused pout. "Um, the moon isn't made of cheese?"

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Because it's me. The Moon, I mean. I'm the Moon."

"Oh." Korra casually stretched her arms above her head, looking around as she did so. "No cheese, huh? Bummer. I could have gone for some Swiss. Love the stuff, especially with bacon."

"Yes, well, life is full of disappointments. Like mine, when I died just after I discovered boys. So, off you go, then. How do you launch your capsule?"

"Oh, I just put it in a giant rock-catapult and Earthbend it to shoot. Only I can do it, because I'm the Avatar." She grinned at Yue and snapped her fingers. "And as far as Avatars go, I'm wicked cool."

Yue hardly heard her. "Earthbend? But... the moon isn't made of Earth. It's made of hard light given substance by my extra-natural existence."

"Huh." Korra looked back at her capsule, then over to Yue. "Guess I'm stuck here, then."

Yue's incorporeal face fell like a very corporal rock. "Stuck here?"

"Until we come up with another idea, yeah." Her grin grew wider, and she stretched her arms again, this time arcing her back in a way that tightened her tunic against her body. "So, how _you_ doin'? I've always wanted to make out with an alien!"

Yue whimpered.

**END**


	90. Fading Shadows

**The Challenge:** To produce good fanfic for the increasingly popular Korra/Yue romantic pairing, despite Korra herself being a mystery.

**Prompt 2:** Lavanya Six (see my Favorite Authors tab) asked for this...

_In the future, the isolationist Northern Water Tribe has fallen on hard time. The flower of its youth it drawn away to far-away ports like Whale Tail Island and Republic City, or rides the rails of the Earth Kingdom's Transcontinental Monorail working as traveling healers and ice-makers. Places where there's easy money for benders and more social freedoms. Poor and with an aging population, history is leaving the North behind. _

_But it still has the best ancient masters, especially when it comes to healing, so Korra travels there to train. And when she wonders if the city's past was really as glorious as the old folks claim it was, she decides to talk with someone who had been there at its so-called "golden age" - the Moon Spirit herself. So the two agree to trade tales of the World As It Was and the World As It Now Is, sharing their lives with one another._

* * *

**Fading Shadows**

It had once been warm there, they said. Korra wasn't sure if she believed them.

Certainly, it was a Very Spiritual Place (as she called them in her head, but _never_ spoke out loud). The energies of life were strong on the little island in the center of the ring of ice. The snow fell slower there, as if time itself was relaxing in the soothing quiet. It was shielded from the Storm Planes by massive cliffs, and hidden from the city by an empty temple. Korra had only discovered the entrance during some idle exploration of the place; she happened to catch a glance of a wooden door standing out against the shadow-covered walls of ice, and forced her way in. Wood was uncommon enough in this dying settlement to arouse suspicion, especially in one as _challenging_ as Korra.

She might have been the latest Avatar, but the old traditions had not yet died, and outspoken foreign women were tolerated but not encouraged.

Korra sat in Lotus Position at the center of the snow-covered hidden island, and surrendered her grip on the physical world. As it had during the previous few attempts, her mind automatically adjusted to handle incorporeal existence, as if it were well practiced in such things. In a way, given the Avatar's reincarnation cycle, it just might be.

Korra's spirit form rose above her body, looked up at the full moon, and sent meaning into the sky. "I request an audience. Won't you come down and speak with me?"

The moon's glow intensified, narrowing into a soft-edge beam. Without eyes, Korra wasn't compelled to turn away from the brightness, but its energies overrode her perceptions and obscured the arrival. When the glow faded, the Moon Spirit floated in front of the Avatar.

The Spirit was beautiful. It was in the form of a young woman, exhibiting the features and color of a classic Water Tribe beauty. The illusion of humanity was compromised, however, by hair so white it might have been shaped from the purest ice, the ice of the faraway stars. Her dress was made of moonlight, the glow smoothly extending just beyond the lines of body. "Hello again, Avatar. It's so nice to see you again."

Korra found herself smiling. "We've met."

"Yes," the Moon answered with a smile of her own, so demure and graceful that Korra felt rough in comparison. "You saved my people, this city, when you were Aang. Our actions together drove away the Fire Nation, and ensured the Northern Water Tribe's survival."

"The city," Korra echoed. "It used to be more alive."

"Yes. Times change, the Earth moves, and even the stars forsake stillness. When I lived, this city was one of the greatest metropolises in the entire world. Now, the new generation has left to explore the world, and only the tired and the bitter remain." The Spirit stared into Korra's eyes, searching the dimensional depths. "I learned that the Southern Tribe was a network of thriving families, two hundred years ago. Only a hundred years later, it had been hunted to near-extinction, scattered and depleted of Waterbenders. Now, of course, it is larger and far more united than its Northern Sister Tribe."

Korra reached out a hand to the Spirit. "As you wax and wane, so do our Tribes."

The Moon Spirit took Korra's hand in both of hers, and held it to her heart. "You are very wise, Avatar."

Korra usually felt embarrassment over compliments to anything but her bending, having worked so hard to project an image of strength and direction, but something about being in the Moon Spirit's presence washed away the lies of life. "I don't stop to think, very often, so when I do I tend to have a lot of Clever Karma built up."

"Is that why you've come to this city? To think?"

"To learn healing," Korra sighed. "I like fighting, but I haven't met the bending style yet I haven't enjoyed learning. This is the best place for Healers, still, even if there isn't much else to it."

The Spirit's eyes broke contact. "You remind me of people I once... knew. It has been so long since I shared contact with humanity." Korra felt a wave of cold wash out from the Moon's human form and up her own arm. "I think I miss it. Yes, that is the feeling."

"Well, hey," Korra quickly responded, rakish grin lighting up her face. "I'm here, you're here, might as well call it a party. Tell you what, you show me what this city _used_ to look like, back when it was the hottest place on ice, and I'll tell you about the time I rode an Elephant Koi. _Into Kyoshi Island's fishing docks._. And then tied it to a pier and went ashore to buy some chips. Bet you never did anything like that."

The Moon Spirit's gaze returned, and Korra felt the warmth that the Elders said once made this little ice-locked island into a equatorial oasis. Their twin Spirit forms flared with light, and joined together to fully fade from the physical world. "Call me Yue. Please, Avatar Korra, let us share our old happiness."

**END**


	91. Proof

_Aavatar Spirit Dot Net's lates drabble contest called for an awesome action scene. Question asked and answered, baby! (This story won. Yay!)_

* * *

**Proof**

Katara uncorked her waterskin and scanned the surrounding forest. The first attack would come at any moment, and with _these_opponents, not being ready could make it the last.

A breeze rustled the leaves on the branches above her. The afternoon sunlight lazily lit the moss-covered ground. Katara settled into a bow stance, front leg bent with the back leg straight, but with more weight distributed on the back than usual, for better defensive opportunities. As she moved, the water shifted in the pouch on her back, and Katara matched her breathing to the lazy swirling of the liquid. Ready to move at the speed of reflex, the Waterbender raised her eyes to the forest canopy above.

When the motion finally came, it was almost too subtle to catch. A shadow detached itself from the trunk of one of the trees and fluttered lightly in a way that didn't at all match the ongoing breeze. Katara barely waved her water out and down into a protective ice-wall before the razor disc slammed into it.

Mai.

Darn. She had been expecting Ty Lee.

Experience taught Katara that Mai could shatter her ice walls with only a few well-placed blades, and there certainly wasn't a chance that the knife-thrower would run out of ammo any time soon. In this case, the best defense was a good offense. Mixed with a little real defense. But not too much, or Katara would wind up pinned. Figuratively. _Then_literally.

Katara hated trying to think while she was fighting.

A yanking motion turned her wall back into water and a thrusting palm smoothly brought it around into a reaching water-arm. Mai was forced to dodge to the side, but did so with a spin that somehow (Mai did this _thing_where she could throw knives without anyone actually witnessing the motion) unleashed a flurry of razor discs. They flew in arcs that came in at Katara from her right, forcing her to withdraw her attack. The first one, she knocked out of the air with a well-timed waterwhip. The second, she was able to dodge with a slight shift of her weight.

The third was on a collision course for _Katara's face_. She ducked in a panic, and her waterwhip fell limp and splashed to the ground. Great.

Then a rain of stilettos began falling.

Katara scrambled off the mossy ground and broke into a full run. Mai followed, of course, taking the time every so often to casually wave a few bolts from her wrist launchers in Katara's general direction. In addition to the light cuts the Waterbender had sustained in the stiletto storm, which hurt only when she strained her muscles by running, a significant minority of the little arrows were hitting close enough to shave off snatches of clothing and layers of skin. Katara didn't know if Mai was genuinely missing or just toying with her, but either way, this retreat was not succeeding. She had to turn the situation around.

Katara attempted to do just that, with a sharp dodge that would have let her begin a new, truly terrifying (in her own mind, anyway) attack, but instead her boots lost their grip on the mossy forest floor, and she stumbled to the ground and quickly skidded to chlorophyll-stained halt.

OW.

"Benders," Mai drawled teasingly. Katara looked up at the knife-thrower, now approaching in an ominous amble that weaved between the tall trees. The knife-thrower's black and burgundy robes blended well with the shadowed bark of the trees. "Always throwing yourselves around when just throwing a single knife could finish the job."

That was actually a good point. Katara tucked her hands into fists and yanked them towards herself.

The tree behind Mai exploded into a swarm of splinters and a great big ball of water.

Mai barely had time to turn around before that ball of water threw itself at her head in the form of an airborne river.

As Mai slammed into the ground, Katara grinned triumphantly and blew a freezing breath at the soaked Fire Nation girl. "On the other hand, it's great having some _real_power behind my attacks, don't you think?"

Mai's only reply was an icicle-crusted glare.

Katara was about to say something more when a suspiciously large shadow projected across the moss-covered ground. With a sickening sense of dread, the Waterbender immediately realized what was about to happen. She frantically used a strong arm-motion to grab the most readily accessible source of water- a thin ice sculpture that answered to 'Mai'- and threw the whole solid mass in the direction of the shadow's owner. A pink blur collided with the frozen Mai and squawked in surprise.

Ty Lee.

It was a good hit, but Katara knew it wouldn't have a lasting effect. If she was _lucky_, Ty Lee wouldn't recover in time to land on her feet, but either way, the acrobat would be back in the fight in seconds at most. Katara drew water from another tree, streaming a portion back into her waterskin as a reserve and keeping the rest in motion in the air. If Sokka was here, he might complain about 'flying water' again; although, come to think of it, it had been a while since he felt the need to annoy her with that.

Katara cast her eyes back towards her enemies just in time to find Ty Lee springing at her.

The acrobat struck with her left fist, fingers unevenly arranged to more effectively target chi-nodes. Dodging would be in vain; Ty Lee was easily fast, flexible, and efficient enough in her movements to flow readily into additional attacks, and she only had to get in one hit to disable _at least_one of Katara's limbs. Attempting to block the blow would be even more dangerous, as there was no place on the human body that didn't offer exploitable chi meridians.

Of course, Katara didn't plan on blocking with _flesh_.

Keeping her left arm out to the side of her body, Katara swiped the other through the path Ty Lee's fist would be traveling, streaming her bending water between her two hands. The motion of the water worked on its mass, and Ty Lee struck the wave to find it offering more than enough deflective power to halt her attack.

Ty Lee blinked.

Katara grinned.

Ty Lee struck again.

Katara water-blocked again.

Ty Lee leapt into the air, somersaulted over Katara's head, and struck downward at the Waterbender.

Katara ducked her head and ran.

This time, Katara knew she wouldn't be able to get very far. Even if she was in the middle of a jump, Ty Lee could be back in pursuit faster than Katara could think. So all the Waterbender did was put some distance between herself and her opponent, and unleash her full _long-range_power. Katara started by compressing the water covering her hands into a globe and flicking it outward to explode into a cluster of ice-shards.

She'd have to thank Mai for the inspiration, sometime.

The sharpened icicles flew at the acrobat with all the speed of a bison sneeze, but she somehow managed to evade; in this case, 'somehow' entailed an almost unnatural twisting of her body that let her slip between the shards while still moving forward at full speed. Katara gave in to the urge to growl with annoyance, and drew the last of the 'bendables' from her waterskin. She raised her arms up in a pattern like unfolding wings, and the water responded by moving up to fully encase her forearms. She reached out with one of them and streamed a probing whip at Ty Lee, not even waiting to see if the attack struck home before striking with her other arm as well.

Ty Lee's response was a sight to behold. She didn't stop, or even slow down at all. She just kept moving at Katara, even managing to accelerate a little as she dodged each every strike of the waterwhips. She spun around the attacks, leaped over them, and rolled beneath them. She transitioned from propelling herself with her legs to somehow running just on her arms without any awkwardness. She managed to make each of her already impressive jumps carry her even further by turning every would-be landing into a springing push back into the air.

For some reason, other people wondered why Ty Lee scared Katara out of her mind.

When Ty Lee finally got within punching range, that fear made Katara's reaction unthinking and clumsy, and so Ty Lee was easily able to lean over the wall of water that Katara was in the process of raising to painfully tap the Waterbender a little forward of her right hip. A sharp pain exploded from that spot, and suddenly Katara's whole right leg gave up its ability to function.

The Waterbender dropped to the ground at gravity's full acceleration.

"Time to finish her off," came Mai's voice from behind Ty Lee. The knife-thrower stepped into view, her clothes and hair still glazed with half-melted frost, looking a rather damp and sullen mess. Her hands flicked inside her long sleeves for half a second, and each emerged holding one of the girl's larger tri-pointed blades. "I call first dibs."

Ty Lee, her expression conveying only a slight worry, stepped back to let her friend have a clear shot. Mai, however, wasn't interested in throwing anything this time. She stalked towards Katara slowly, as if trying to project a menacing image.

It was kind of working.

Yet Katara still had one last trick to try.

She was lying on the forest ground, a ground made up of dirt, dead leaves, pebbles, and one more thing. Most of the ground was covered in thick slippery, smelly, _moist_moss. Katara focused her being on connecting with the water spread throughout the mat of tiny plants, and making it think of itself as one big system of water. Then she screamed, threw all of her functioning limbs out away from her body, and made the entire forest floor explode into a world where rain falls up and monsoon season had just arrived.

Ty Lee and Mai disappeared completely from Katara's sight, but she could clearly hear their shrieks of surprise. They were stunned, wet, and miserable, but not yet beaten. So Katara brought her arms back towards her body with parallel punching motions. The rising rain stopped its ascension and swirled in place with the same basic motion, Mai and Ty Lee at the center.

It probably felt an awful lot like being pummeled by a zillion angry flies all at once.

Even for small things, a zillion is a really big number.

When all the water fell back to the ground, turning what was left of the forest floor to mud, Ty Lee and Mai were visible both sprawled on the mess, looking even worse than forest around them. The acrobat was waving an arm frantically, calling out, "Give! Give!"

Mai was just groaning.

Katara tried to get up, but her leg still wasn't working. Looking down at herself and realizing that she was just as filthy now as her opponents, she decided to just drag herself over to where they were laying, and let herself flop down between them. "I pass?" she asked.

Ty Lee gave a moan. "You pass. Welcome to the Dangerous Ladies."

Mai snorted. "I thought we were Zuko's Angels."

"That used to work, but this time Zuko isn't giving us orders." Ty Lee's voice gained strength as she pondered the matter out loud. "Besides, that still doesn't cover when we were working for Fire Lord Ozai and Azula. 'The Dangerous Ladies' is much more general. Besides, Sokka came up with it, and he's cute and clever."

"Whatever," Mai grumbled. "I'm still disappointed I don't get her hair-loopies as a trophy."

"So," Ty Lee asked as she turned to look Katara in the face. "Are you in?"

"I get a choice?" Katara was pretty surprised by that. When the acrobat had come to her for help with whatever mission she was planning with Mai, she made it sound very important- too important to involve someone who couldn't hold her own against Azula's former lackeys at least once.

Ty Lee smiled at the Waterbender. "On my teams, new recruits _always_get a choice."

Katara smiled back. "I'm in. Say hello to your newest Dangerous Lady."

"You two," Mai declared with a roll of her eyes, "are ridiculous."

Katara laughed, and threw some mud at her.

**END**


	92. The Way of the Will

**The Way of the Will**

On a windy afternoon, the sun shone down on a mansion courtyard in the Fire Nation. Two people were meeting in the courtyard- young and old, woman and man, killer and innocent, hand-to-hand combatant and master swordsman. The two were discussing philosophy, and various ways to hurt people, which can be one and the same to people in the Nation of Fire. The man stood with his hands folded behind his straightened back, while the girl balanced upside-down on her forefingers.

"That which lives is all that is dependable in this world," the girl said. "Wood is dead and rots, metal is unsacred and can be worn away by nature. Earth and Fire know no single master. The loyalty of them all fades with distance. All you can depend on is that with a will, and the will that is yours is always the most powerful of all."

"And what of the wind?" the man spoke softly.

"I do not speak of the wind." After that, the girl said no more.

The man drew strength from the silence, and picked his sword up from where it rested on its bench. "I have seen the living fail, just as you claim the unliving does. Nothing is dependable in this world; that which you hold in your hand, living or unliving, is perhaps the closest to it. I have seen it pierce the living and render will a whisper on the wind."

The girl flipped into a standing position. She went over to the training grounds, and stood before a series of standing wooden boards. With a snapping quickness, she drove an arrow-shaped fist straight through the whole line of planks, breaking them effortlessly. Then, she turned to the man and smiled. "My fists are my will, and my will lives in me. How can anything merely held in the hand serve the full will of the hand?"

The man bowed with respect, and drew his sword from his sheath. He took only the naked blade with him as he strode to the corner of the training grounds, where a marble pillar stood bearing the Nation's standard. He assumed a stance, drew the sword back, and- seemingly experiencing no resistance- drove the sword straight through the stone up to the hilt. He let go, stood straight, and fixed his robes before he drew the sword back out. A clear and rectangular hole, split by a small perpendicular crack, went straight back into the darkness.

"My sword is my hand," was all the man said.

The girl bowed her head in defeat.

**END**

* * *

_Did you know that it's Piandao Shipping Week? No, seriously. Today is Ty Lee's day. Check out my deviantArt page (loopy777 dot deviantart dot com) for more info. You know you're curious. And if not, you should be, loser._**  
**


	93. Anything Was Going to be a Letdown

**Anything Was Going to be a Letdown**

"You, and your friends, are at my mercy."

Amon's voice rang out hollowly from behind his mask, but it still sent shivers up Korra's spine (and she had grown up on a glacier, so she knew cold). The Avatar balled her hands into fists, and flames popped up to dance from her wrists to her knuckles. "Let. Them. Go. Jerkface."

Amon might have been smiling behind his mask. Or snarling. "Oh, I will. Anything for the Idol of the Corrupt Caste System. I'll even let you choose." He solemnly pointed a finger at his captives.

Mako was hanging from a rope over a water-filled pit, and if the number of shark fins peaking up through the surface was any indication, it was a great day for swimming. Bolin was tied down to a rack, a giant magnifying glass focusing the sunlight into a super-hot pinpoint that was steadily moving down towards his head.

Korra would have liked to go rescue them in a great sequence that proved she could do two things at once, but her legs weren't working very well after they had been poked by Amon's Finger Clan, so she was stuck in place.

They were all depending on Amon's mercy.

"Choose, Avatar."

Korra looked at Bolin. He shook his head. "Save Mako!"

Korra looked at Mako. His lip curled with disdain. "Don't listen to him. Save my brother!"

Korra looked back between the two, her heart tearing within her chest.

"Choose," Amon repeated.

"Maybe," Korra bit out, "we can make a deal."

Amon's head cocked slightly to the side. "What did you have in mind? Equality for non-benders? Amnesty for my crimes? Some form of corrupt power?"

Korra shook her head. "If I let you keep the brothers, can I have Bolin's ferret thing and Mako's scarf? We could put the scarf on the ferret if that will help?"

Amon just stared at her. Probably. It was hard to tell behind that mask. "That's the cutest thing I've ever heard."

So he let them all go and went home to upload the video to Youtube.

**END**


	94. Dangerous AGender

**Dangerous A-Gender**

In retrospect, maybe slapping Zuko on the butt was a _tad_ too presumptuous for a crowded setting. Especially with Zuko's girlfriend meeting the group for the first time.

Of course, it's not like Sokka _meant_ anything with it, herself. It's just that Zuko is way too much fun to tease; he gets flustered by something as innocent as a wink, and a flustered Zuko is an incoherent and cranky Zuko (which everyone in the group knew was the best combination for him). And, really, who knew that butts were such a big deal in the Fire Nation? Something more towards the bow of his boat? Sure, that would be nasty, but everyone has a butt, and as long as it's covered, what's the big deal? It's not like she was fondling him or anything. She slapped her brother Katara's sometimes, and no ever reacted like it was incest or anything.

Mai didn't seem to share Sokka's blasé attitude about it.

The knife-thrower had been glaring... well, daggers... at Sokka ever since the innocent slap. Which was an _hour_ago. Really, you think she'd be madder about the way Aang had practically crawled onto Zuko's lap and glued herself there, but no, Mai was focused on Sokka. Of course, Sokka considered herself amazingly hot, while Aang's youth and whole half-shaved head-thing probably mitigated her flirting, so it was only natural that Mai would automatically be jealous of Sokka. Ty Lee had felt the need to declare herself prettier than Sokka during their first fight, and now Mai was playing catch-up.

Well, time to be the bigger woman and fix this. She waited until Mai stepped away to get more tea, and discreetly hurried over to walk beside the knife-thrower "Hey, Mai. Ha, that rhymes. Although, is it just me, or does your name sound kind of weird? Well, never mind. I wanted to say that I'm sorry I smacked your boyfriend's butt. I didn't mean anything by it, but I should have been more aware and stuff. I'll keep my hands to myself from now on."

Mai didn't even meet Sokka halfway. She just gave a little snort that was positively derisive. "Yeah, you do that."

Oh, so that was how she was going to play it, huh? "No, problem. We're all about World Peace now, so anything to keep relations good with hoity-toity Fire Nation witches is cool with me." Then, she delivered the _real_ insult.

Sokka smacked Mai in the rear, hard enough jolt her forward a step.

The way Mai's eyes bugged out was _hilarious_. "You-" the gloomy girl gasped, before running out of words.

Sokka grinned. "Hey, not bad." Her hand went back to Mai's backside. "Not too big, but rather shapely. No wonder Zuko never picked up what I left behind, if you get me. I'm jealous. (Of your butt, not Zuko.) I'll have to make sure to spend more time with _you_, sister." She left Mai blushing and stammering, employing her best 'Water Triiiibe' cool walk for the occasion.

As such, Sokka completely failed to notice the small smile that found it's way to Mai's face.

The post-war world would be rather interesting, indeed.

**END**

* * *

_Yes, it's Maikka Yuri. In my defense, Lavanya Six is the one who brought it up. But I am ever a servant to the Maikka ship._

_On that note, **Maikka Fortnight 2011 is starting on September 4th. **For more information, including a full list of themes and dates, go to **maikka-fans dot deviantart dot com**._**  
**


	95. The Rational Hunter

**The Rational Hunter**

It paid to be thorough.

Some people in this business, they only look at the latest postings. Sure, that was the safest money, and in this line of work, a sure thing was always worth your time, but you didn't become _famous _by playing it safe. (And you probably weren't in this business at all if you were rational about all of your life's decisions.) The best bounties were the old ones, the really tough ones that the top of the trade had taken a run at and walked away from with their tails between their legs (if they walked away at all). That was where the prize money was.

You just had to check that your potential employer was still alive and willing to pay. Turns out that the Fire Lord, or at least whoever handed out his money for bounties in the Earth Kingdom, was still interested in taking possession of Piandao the Swordsman, sure. If June could bring him in.

She wouldn't have asked if she couldn't.

At least, that was what she thought when she set out, following the scent trail that had begun with a broken rat-tail jian. She found the man easily enough, just hours away from boarding a boat to the Fire Nation's Outer Islands.

Turned out, one guy with a sword _could _put up a pretty decent fight against an angry shirshu and June herself.

Things had wound down at the edge of the battle-damaged docks, with Piandao himself standing at the water's edge, facing June and her blind, furry partner with the sensitive nose. June cracked her whip and glared at her quarry. "Put the sword down, buddy. I promise, you'll still meet _most_ people's definition of a man without it."

The swordsman was maddeningly calm, like he was taking a walk in the flippin' park. "No, I don't think I will. It seems to be the only thing keeping your pet from lashing me. I would warn you not to take that as a challenge, as I believe I _am_fast enough to intercept the tongue with my blade, and I would hate to hurt the big guy."

"Awwwww," June drawled as sarcastically as possible. "Very considerate of you. Trying to get on my good side?"

Piandao managed to shrug while still maintaining a good defensive stance. "Not really. I just happen to like big animals. It would truly grieve me to cut this one's tongue off." He seemed perfectly serious. If he had a sense of humor, it certainly didn't run towards blatant sarcasm.

Oh. Well, _that_was one way to get on her good side. "Nyla, go!" The shirshu actually turned to growl at her. "I said go, honey. Leave him to me. I'll be fine. That's a good snuffly wuffly!" As Nyla stomped away, probably to find something to eat in the wrecked neighborhood, June tossed her whip to the ground, ran her hands through her hair, and moved her decorative clip down to clamp it all into a tight knot that wouldn't get in the way. "Your turn, buddy. I got rid of my pet and my weapon, time for you to drop the sword. We'll settle this the old-fashioned way."

"Because you're such an old-fashioned girl," he said. But he gave her a hard look, one every bit as metallic as his blade, and relaxed out of his stance. He placed the sword carefully on the ground. "But I suppose one good turn deserves another."

As they approached for the final fight, June licked her lips. She'd wrestled younger, but never someone who had a soft spot for giant hairballs. That made him unique, and as a hunter, June loved collecting ones of a kind.

This hunt would be worth it either way. Hmmm, hmmmmmmmmmmm.

**END**


	96. Putting It Together

**Putting It Together**

The tavern was dimly lit, but that suited Sokka just fine. It matched the shadows that had descended on _his heart!_. The agonizing, corrosive shadows that made him doubt that he would ever know _love!_. The shadows that clawed their way into his life, and tore it apart just like Momo tears about a paper bag when he's hungry and can smell the food inside and Sokka was really looking forward to that snack but everyone else just laughed!

_Shadows!_

Sokka downed the rest of the liquid in his mug and plopped it on the bar. "Another!" Even though it was his eighth, the bartender complied without question. Sokka took a long pull from the new mug, but took no enjoyment in it. His soul was shadowy like the bottom of an empty mug in a dimly lit tavern.

_Dim! Shadows!_

His life would never know light again, now that Suki had betrayed him.

* * *

The bartender left the Water Tribe guy to his miseries and went into the back. The guy was drinking cheap today, so the bartender had no qualms about getting some work done, unpacking some crates for tonight's crowd, while the guy cried into his mug. He thought he had seen the guy around on Kyoshi Island, but he had certainly never visited this tavern before. Probably another transient sailor who came and went, knowing no home but the various watering holes in ports around the world.

The bartender sighed. It sounded like a fine life.

He was so lost in the daydreams of living out of a sealskin bag that he never saw where the black-haired Kyoshi Warrior came from. "Sorry sir, but we're going to have to requisition your establishment for some official Kyoshi Warrior business."

The bartender's jaw dropped. "But, I-"

"Sir, if you set one foot back into that bar, I'm going to have my associate here disable your limbs."

From somewhere behind him, another Kyoshi Warrior materialized. She was grinning like a loon, or a perky teenage girl, and waved in a very friendly manner.

The bartender decided that he could use a long break, before the evening shift. He left without a word.

* * *

Suki found Sokka sitting at the bar, as reported. He had an impressive stack of empty mugs next to him. Suki hoped he wasn't too gone to have a conversation with her. She very much wanted to know why he was wasting the time for their latest visit in this grubby tavern. "Sokka?"

"Shadows!"

Well, at least he wasn't slurring his words. "Sokka, what's wrong?"

He lurched to stare at her, pointing a finger that was so accusatory it was practically pointing a finger of its own. "You've left me in your dust, sister! I can take a hint, and I'm not going to stick around for the final battle! I'll be out on the first boat back to the South Pole!"

Suki stepped towards him, taking his pointing hand in her own and lowering it. "Sokka, I don't want you to leave. How could you ever think that?"

"I got eyes!" He pointed at them by way of demonstration. Apparently not impressed by her expression, he pointed again, more vigorously, this timing managing to poke himself.

When he recovered, he turned back to his nearly-empty mug. "I've been putting it all together, sister. I know you've moved on to better. Just let me drown my sorrows."

"Sokka, you're being ridiculous. Just tell me what's wrong."

"First!" he screeched. He turned back to her, his eyes wide. "First, was Zuko!"

"Zuko?"

* * *

Summer. Ember Island. The Fire Lord's beach house. A gathering of friends.

"Hey, Zuko," Suki said, staring at him. "You're really bulked up since last time we were here."

"Yeah." The scarred Firebender looked down at his bare chest. "It took me a while to put the weight back on after my time as a fugitive in the Earth Kingdom. I've been eating protein, and working out. I used to look like this, back when I was searching for the Avatar."

"Nice."

* * *

"That's it?"

"_You were checking him out!_"

Suki wasn't sure if he was joking. She cautiously sat down at the bar, next to him. "Sokka, I just commented on his build. I did the same for Aang, when I noticed how tall he'd grown."

"_AANG TOO?_"

"_No._ Besides, you were right there when I talked to him! You weren't upset with me then!"

Sokka sighed. "Then there's what came after that."

* * *

Summer. Ember Island. The festival. Mingling with the crowds.

"Hey, baby."

"I have a name," was Suki's quick reply.

"Want to give it to me? Among other things?"

"Get lost, loser."

"Yeah, loser. She has a boyfriend. Me."

The young man was unimpressed. "Listen, buddy, I'm _Ruon Jian_. Who are you to tell me what to do?"

"Her. Boyfriend."

"Yeah, whatever. So, baby, I know a nude beach on the other side of the island. Want to ditch this spaz and check it out?"

That's when Suki shoved a knee into his crotch.

* * *

"Oh, come one, you can't possibly turn that against me!"

"No," Sokka said, voice low. "That was against me."

"What?"

"I'm just not enough. Other guys can see it, and they aren't intimidated by me. Everyone can see you're in a class above me. It was only a matter of time before you saw it, too, sister."

Suki wanted to smack her own forehead hard enough to smear the facepaint on it. _What_ had gotten into Sokka? "_What_ has gotten into you?"

Sokka slammed a fist on the bar. "I had all the clues, but I didn't see it until I got here. Once I heard, I put it all together. I saw clearly for the first time! It was all over, and you were just too nice to tell me."

"Oh, for- Sokka, tell me what's wrong."

"_You've been kissing someone else!_"

She blinked. Sokka's finger was up again. "Sokka, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"_Don't you?_"

"Not really, no. I don't even have an attractive cousin you can mistake for a romantic rival. I am completely in the dark." Suki looked around. "Literally and metaphorically."

"Oh yeah? Well, when I got off the boat this morning, _The Duke_ told me that you kissed someone else today!"

"What? Tell me exactly what he said."

* * *

Today. Kyoshi Island. The docks. Getting off the boat.

"Hey, Sokka."

"Hey, The Duke. How you doing here on Kyoshi Island?"

"It's great! I'm learning how to be a fisherman!"

"Great. Suki around?"

"She's on duty. But, you know, this morning she kissed another guy."

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

* * *

"So go ahead." Sokka waved a defeated hand. "Deny it. Admit it. It doesn't matter. I get it now. I'm sorry I've been dragging you down."

"The Duke was right."

"Uh huh."

"He gave me a fish today, for my dinner, and when I asked what he wanted for it, he asked for a kiss. So I gave him one on the forehead."

Sokka sat in silence for a while. Then he drained the last of his drink, stood up, and turned to look Suki directly in the eyes. "Honest?"

"Honest."

"I'm going to kill that kid."

Suki smiled. "Let me have a talk with him. I'll let him know what isn't appropriate behavior for a precocious crush."

Sokka smiled back. "Sounds good. So, when do you get off duty?"

"What, you're just shaking off that many drinks? Don't you need a nap or something?"

"Nah, I was just drinking water. Booze dehydrates a body, so pretty much everyone in the Water Tribe hates it."

"Huh," Suki said. Then she left arm in arm with her boyfriend.

**END**


	97. Hardly Fair

**Hardly Fair**

"Yu the Dreaded sat in his throne room, in the sixteenth year of his uncontested rule, when his dark sanctum was disturbed by a girl. This surprised him on many levels. His fortress rose out of flying island, a piece of the Unified World that Yu had torn from the rest and floated above all. Should someone even make their way through the empty sky, the fortress itself was filled with nothing but corrupted Animas, starved shadows that devoured body and soul. Yet a simple girl, wearing the robes of a field worker, stood before him. As ever, Yu wore the polished silver Goblin armor that concealed his body and face. His booming voice echoed out of the snarling visage of his helmet. He said, 'Why has one so weak come before me to die?' The sound echoed off the ebony walls.

"The girl did not bow before him, but her voice was soft and deferential. 'Please, lord,' she said to him. 'Spare my life. I heard talk of your evil grandeur, and came to see if the rumors were true.' She presented a shy face, partially hidden by bangs of black hair.

"Yu the Dreaded was not without pride, and so smiled beneath his helmet. 'And what do you see, child? Does Yu live up to his legend?' The warlord was, of course, completely without mercy, and would not spare anyone for mere flattery, but he felt no rush to end this brief distraction.

"The girl lowered her eyes and said, 'Oh, certainly, lord. I understand now why no one has stood to oppose you for as long as I have lived.'

"Yu the Dreaded laughed boldly. 'The last rebel to contest my will died sixteen years ago, when I slew the Element Bender. He had plagued my rise to power for over a hundred years, and only when all his friends and allies were destroyed did he finally stand his ground and fight me to the death. All the Unified World now labors under my will.'

"The girl gaped. 'One hundred years! I did not realize that you were so ancient. And yet you are so full of life!' The last was added quickly, as though to avoid giving insult.

"The Dread lord was not so petty. He slowly came down the staircase that extended beneath his throne, to the chamber floor where the girl trembled. 'I am much older than a mere hundred years,' he said. 'I have lived centuries beyond count, as did my greatest enemy. Both of us were masters of the Bending of Energy, and used that power to grow stronger and more powerful with age. Mine was always the greater power, and after countless defeats, my enemy turned to the Spirits for help. A Heron taught him the Elements, but even the combined power of Water, Earth, Fire and Air could not stop me.'

"At last, the girl bowed. 'I at last understand. I have heard so many stories about you, but foolishly thought that not all could be true, for it would require the lifespans of an army of men. But now I see, all the stories are but one story, The Triumph of Yu the Dreaded.' Her bangs hid her face, but her voice was fawning.

"Yu stood in front of her, and looked down at the girl with something approaching the stirrings of affection. He thought that he might take her as a wife, to see how long she might continue to amuse him. 'And what do you say happens next in my story, woman?'

"The girl looked up, and smiled. 'The ending, my lord.' Then she rose, swinging a petite arm as though attacking with a sword, and a focused gust of wind struck the dread lord in the chestplate of his armor, cleaving it cleanly. The warlord tried to speak, but the girl moved again, and a stream of water flew from the canteen on her belt and washed into the helmet, choking his words. Unable to breathe, he moved too slowly to stop her from punching the exposed flesh of his chest with a fist flowering with flames.

"Yu the Dreaded fell to the ground, unable to even scream in pain.

"The girl, though, was not without mercy herself. She waited until Yu could speak again. He said, 'How is it you knew me so, to manipulate me. How did you know the secret arts of my enemy? You knew me so thoroughly, the fight was over before I could join it. How?'

"The girl smiled. 'I am your enemy. I died sixteen years ago, but the Spirits intervened again, and bound my Anima to the earth. I was reborn as this girl, trained by the Lionturtles with the goals of finally seeing your tyranny at an end, and leading the world into a new age. The Spirits now watch with satisfaction as I end our long feud.'

"The dread lord had but one last response before the girl did bend the stone of the throne room to crush the life from his body. 'You and the Spirits are bloody cheaters, you rat-bitten stinkyhead! When you die, you're supposed to stay dead! I bet no one is going to reincarnate _me_. Bloody cheaters.' Then Yu the Dreaded was destroyed by his greatest enemy.

"She then used her command of the Elements to sunder the Unified World, dividing it into two lands- the realm of Anima and the realm of Body. Her own Anima would serve as the bridge between the two, and so long as she was reborn, a human would never again hold dominion over the Spirits.

"The two worlds knew peace, and learned reverence for the elements.

"Well?"

"That was... interesting. Very interesting, Mai. You're getting better at this writing. I liked the classic structure and language, and it was neat to discover that the hero was one of my past lives. Maybe a few bits of dialogue could use some work, though."

"...now you're just being completely unreasonable."

**END**


	98. Tart

**Tart**

"Oh, wow, it's so big," Suki gasped.

Sokka grinned at the compliment. "You know, anyone overhearing us would probably take that the completely wrong way."

Suki grimaced. "Don't be crude. Now, come on, tell me about your thingy here."

Sokka nodded. He stood up tall and puffed out his chest, the better to set the mood. He and Suki were outside, on the covered back porch of their temporary home, as the sun set past the Great Walls. They didn't visit Ba Sing Se often, but one member or another of their circle of friends was always stopping by the ambiguously-titled Impenetrable City, so the group maintained a large house there that any of them could use at need. Currently, Sokka and Suki were enjoying a quiet stay in the city where 'what happens in Ba Sing Se stays in Ba Sing Se, probably because someone erased your memory or locked you up in a cave somewhere.' The young Water Tribe man motioned in front of him, and said, "_This_ is my _lemon-lightning-producer_."

"Oooh," Suki said as she looked at the rather large example of the yellow fruit sitting on the table, and the simple machinery that was built around it. "The name really fails to do it justice."

"Yeah," Sokka sighed. "I'll keep thinking about it."

"So come on, explain to me. You know that's your favorite part."

Sokka instantly unwilted. "Very true. See, it came to me the other night when we were... uh..."

"What, _now_ you're concerned about speaking delicately?"

"Hey, we're outside. Someone could here us."

Suki rolled her eyes. "Okay, one: this yard is the size of Kyoshi Island, so I doubt our neighbors even know we're out here. Two: being overheard sure didn't concern you the other night when we-"

"Suki, as much as I'd love to hear your detailed reference to how we expressed our love for one another, I think we're getting off track."

"Okay, okay." The Kyoshi Warrior massaged her forehead with one hand. "So, we were talking about your big lemon."

"Yes! Well, the idea came to me the other night, when we left the window open and that breeze came through and put out all the candles, and we were in the dark. Remember?"

"If you think I could forget by now, you're not very confident as a man, are you?"

Sokka glared at her. "Now who's the crude one?"

"Sorry, sorry," Suki cooed. "I don't know, something about the smell of fresh lemons always puts me in a mischievous mood."

"But, I thought that back on Kyoshi Island, one of the staples of life is plain-broiled fish with lemon." Sokka scratched his head in confusion, belatedly realizing he was probably getting lemon scent in his hair.

Suki just nodded. "And now you know why I was so frustrated when we first met that I was going to throw you to the Unagi just for being comically ignorant."

"Huh." Sokka was lost to pondering that for a few moments. "Well, as fascinating as that is, I do have a lemon here I'd like to explain."

"Please do."

"Okay, so there we were in the dark, and I was thinking that it would be great if we could harness all the energy we were producing to somehow light the room up."

Suki grimaced. "Is this about you wanting me to be a Firebender again? Because let me tell you, it doesn't make feel very good, and especially after that book was published about you and Azula last year-"

"Oh, sure!" Sokka crossed his arms and leaned over the table to really get in Suki's face. "You're fine with explicit stories about my sister and Zuko having passionate affairs in uncomfortable settings, you _collected every single print variation of that book about Aang and Mai practically writing an anatomy text book together_, and now all of a sudden you're mad about a book about me and Azula."

"_You got the author to sign your copy!_"

"That was for the irony! I didn't tell her that I'm me!"

"Ugh, never mind," Suki growled. She leaned back, crossed her arms in mimicry of Sokka, and said, "Hit me with your lemon thing already."

"Fine." Sokka took a few deep breaths, and then started anew. "So, I got to thinking about how energy could be used to produce light, and you were on the right track with the Firebending, but what could normal people do? So, I remembered how embers can glow, even if they're not actually on fire, and I got to wondering if that could be done with different materials to produce a range of brightness. Of course, that leaves the question of a real power source. My, ah, inspiration wouldn't be the most efficient method."

Suki could help but smirk at the imagery. "True."

"But then I remembered Azula's lightning!" Sokka waited to see if Suki was going to get upset again. "No comment?"

Suki's expression didn't change. "Not for now. Just so long as we're clear that Azula is an _alternative_ to a two-person power source."

"Clearer than my sister's ice."

"Good."

"Okay." Sokka grinned again, fully in his element, and lifted the lemon. "So, I remembered that lightning is a form of energy that travels through metal and can ignite things on fire! And, well, you remember that time me and the Mechanist talked about acids and the way they interact with certain metals, right?"

Suki smiled politely. "Let's assume I do."

"So, I realized that if I insert a sturdy rod made of the right stuff into the succulent lemon, the juicy fruit will interact powerfully with the mighty metal, and the results could totally heat things up and light a fire!"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...moving on, I figured out that if I put certain strong kinds of wood in a sealed glass ball with little or no air, it will glow and won't burn. So I connect the wood to the rod to the acidic fruit, and I get a little source of light!"

Suki processed all that, looking over Sokka's contraption, and matching what she saw with what she had heard. Her eyes lit up and she smiled at her boyfriend. "That's amazing! Let's go try it out in a dark room!"

"Okay! Which room?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..._oh_." A smirk overtook the young Water Tribe man's face. "Recreating the original conditions for the experiment, huh?"

Suki's expression matched his. "You might say that. Let's just say that the lemon smell has put me in a mood."

Sokka happily grabbed his lemon, and together the couple trotted back into the house. Their minds were ahead of them, so it was perfectly understandable that it took them both a few moments to realize what they were seeing in the main living room. Sokka and Suki both stared at Aang, and the Avatar himself stared back with a rapidly reddening face.

"I... didn't know you guys were here," Aang said.

Sokka didn't bother responding to the Avatar's obvious statement. "That's an interesting use of a lemon, bro."

Suki blinked. "He's _wearing_ the lemon."

"That he is."

"And _only _the lemon."

"I'm guessing my sister is out in front, unpacking Appa."

Aang coughed. "Yes, actually. And, uh, this is a really awkward situation, isn't it?"

Sokka blinked. "This is actually not new for me. Right Suki?"

She grimaced in response. "Thanks for including me this time."

Silence dominated the room for a long moment. Eventually, Sokka planted his rodded-lemon down on the nearest table, and said, "Here, let me know if this lights up your love life. Suki and I will be staying in a hotel in the middle ring somewhere."

"Okay, good luck."

"Just don't squeeze the lemon too hard."

The thing Suki said, before Sokka dragged her out of the room, was, "_Which_ lemon?"

"Hush with your freakish citrus fetish."

**END**


	99. A Kingly Gift

**A Kingly Gift**

Ursa was _not _happy with her husband. The Winter Solstice might not be the most important holiday in Fire Nation culture, but it was Zuko's first celebration of any kind. Would it kill him to take a day to spend with his wife and son? She was fuming (literally) as she stomped back to her son's nursery, and her lack of attention was rewarded when she collided face-first with the Fire Nation's most dangerous Warlord.

Ursa bounced off Iroh like a single arrow off Ba Sing Se's Outer Wall. "Ow," she grunted as her hands went up to cup her sore nose.

Iroh raised his eyebrows. "My apologies. Are you all right, Lady Ursa?"

She tentatively lifted one hand from her nose, and didn't see any blood on it. "Yes, I am." Recovering her wits, she continued, "And I should be the one to apologize, General. I wasn't looking where I was going."

He smiled and waved a hand. "Do not worry about it. But a calm soul typically does not go careening off of other pedestrians in this palace. Is something upsetting you? I don't mean to pry, of course..."

Remembering Ozai's refusal, Ursa was tempted to tell his brother- and every other member of the Royal Family- to go jump in the sea. However, Iroh had only ever been courteous to her, despite his reputation as a devastating general. It couldn't hurt to stay on his good side. "My husband and I had a... disagreement."

"Knowing Ozai, I can scarcely believe that," Iroh chuckled.

So he had a sarcastic streak, eh? "I wanted to make a little Winter Solstice celebration of Zuko, but Ozai felt that he had other priorities. Like reviewing rice production estimates. Drafting letters of recommendation to military commanders who will do their best to ignore him. Being a waste of air. You know, the usual for him on one of his bad days."

A cheeky smile blossomed on Iroh's face, but he quickly suppressed it. "You must be aware," he said, "that my father discourages recognition of the Winter Solstice. It is typically the one day a year that Firebenders are at their weakest. There is the suggestion that the holiday promotes sympathy for the enemy nations."

Ursa sighed, and let her shoulders slump out her typical proper posture. "Oh, I don't really care about the Solstice. But it's Zuko's first holiday. I thought it would be nice to..." She completed the thought with a shrug.

When she looked up again to Iroh, she found his face still and tight. His eyes were calculating. "My nephew's _first holiday_?"

She nodded.

"Well," he said slowly, "we can't let _that_ pass without comment. I'll meet you in Zuko's nursery at the fifteenth hour."

Ursa blinked at him. "Meet me? You? Why?"

He just gave her a sneaky smirk, and moved lightly on his way.

Her heart a little lighter, Ursa trotted on to the nursery.

She found her son just being settled into a fresh diaper cloth by the servants. She happily received the golden-eyed baby and sent the servants on her way. "Your uncle is coming to visit," she cooed. "Doesn't that sound like fun?"

Zuko just stared at her.

"It's the Winter Solstice," she went on. "That's the day of the year when the night is longest, and the Spirit World is closest to our own. It's a magical night, when wishes might come true, and families come together to stay warm and safe. Doesn't that sound like fun?"

She took Zuko's continued interest as agreement.

The fifteenth hour arrived quickly, and precisely on time, a knock sounded on the door. Ursa opened it herself, and was surprised to see not Iroh, but his son Lu Ten. "Hi, Auntie!"

Ursa gave a mock grimace. "I'm not that old yet."

The boy, not quite a teenager, gave her a grin that belonged on a much older and savvier face. "It's a term of affection, Auntie! You're the best, most prettiest Aunt in the world." He leaned to the side, and lifted something from floor. "Where can I put this?"

"That's a plant."

"It's a bonsai from the gardens," he said, carrying it nonchalantly into the nursery. "Dad said that you wanted to celebrate the Solstice, and you can't do that without a Solstice Tree."

"So you stole a bonsai from the gardens?" she laughed. Zuko gave a little laugh in answer.

Lu Ten put the plant down on the changing table and winked at her. "Dad says that anything you can put back before anyone cares can't be stolen. It's natural philosophy."

"Right," Ursa drawled. "Tell me another one."

"Okay." Lu Ten produced a small wheel of pink ribbon from his pocket. "This ribbon was definitely not intended to be a gift to a girl I know. It was always meant to be decorations for the Solstice Tree." He took his standard-issue military knife from his belt, and began cutting swatches to tie around the bonsai's branches. "And none of that is anything that my dad needs to hear about."

"Well, we can agree on that, at least."

As if on cue, the room's door knocked again, and Ursa once again opened it to find her expected guest. "Iroh, did you conscript your son into this?"

"Yes, wasn't that clever of me?" He bustled into the room carrying a tray with a full tea service on it. "I brought all my spiced teas, so that we can properly celebrate the Solstice. What do you think, little Zuko? Does some cinnamon tea strike your fancy?" Iroh pinched a little of the brown dust out of its serving bowl and held it up to the baby's face.

Zuko scrunched his nose and leaned away.

Iroh gave a laugh that rose from the deepest part of his belly. "Well, maybe it's a bit strong for you yet. But you should know that these are Winter traditions, so you'll have to get used to them eventually." He put the cinnamon back and laid the tray on a table. "Did Lu Ten explain the history of the Solstice Tree to Zuko?"

The boy shook his head innocently, but Ursa just rolled her eyes and said, "He's a little young to-"

"Nonsense! Can't you tell that he's a very intelligent little prince?" Iroh reached over and plucked the baby out Ursa's arms, poking a tickling finger at Zuko's middle. The baby smiled and squirmed in response. "Happy Winter Solstice, Zuko! That fine growth is the Solstice Tree. In the old celebrations, it represented life that slumbers during the winter and waits to live again when the sun brings the spring. Like trees, the Children of Fire endure, too strong for cold weather to defeat us. I like the ribbons very much, Lu Ten."

"Thanks, dad!" The boy shifted his feet, like a warrior in a friendly spar. "Can I give Zuko his present now?"

"Of course! I'll pour the tea, you go get it."

Ursa could scarcely believe her ears. "A present? Where did you get a present?"

Iroh smiled at her, and handed her a freshly poured cup of lemon-nutmeg tea. "Lu Ten came up with this all on his own. He's a very clever and resourceful boy. Can't imagine where he got it from."

Ursa could only laugh at that. Zuko looked over from Iroh's arms and once again echoed her with a laugh of his own.

Lu Ten was back in the room at a dash, shoving something right into Zuko's chubby arms. "Here you go happy Winter Solstice hope you like it!" The baby gave a little start, but pressed his arms around the object.

"It's a ball," Ursa said. "A very pretty one."

Lu Ten smiled and nodded at her, but it wasn't the same roguish smile he had been showing off before. This one belonged on a much younger, more innocent face. "It's the ball I played with when I was a baby. My mom had it made special for me. They added gold dust to the rubber mixture so that it would shine. Zuko can have it now."

Ursa put a hand to her face, feeling her throat tighten. She had never met Iroh's wife, Lu Ten's mother, but both only ever spoke of her in the most glowing terms. "Are you sure?"

"Of course. Just make sure Zuko takes care of it, okay?"

Ursa brought her hands together in the sign of respect, and bowed before her nephew. "I promise. You have my gratitude, and Zuko's."

Iroh laid a hand on his son's shoulder, still holding Zuko in the other. "A most handsome gift. It is well given." The baby, of course, was ignoring the exchange, in favoring of examining the metallic ball in his hand. Concentrating hard, he lifted it away from himself, and flung it at the floor. When it bounced high, Zuko gave an unprompted laugh that rang throughout the room.

"Happy Winter Solstice!" Iroh shouted, and drew Ursa into the little bundle of family.

This was exactly what she wanted.

* * *

In a meeting room on the other side of the palace, Fire Lord Azulon looked at his assembled staff. Then he turned to look at the son sitting at his left side, the young Ozai. Then he straightened and let his gaze fall to the floor. "Does anyone have any idea where Iroh is? I would very much like to plan how to conquer Omashu right now."

**END**


	100. The Ember Island Lighthouse

**The Ember Island Lighthouse**

**~History~**

Living in the Age of the Warlords, Fire Lord Ranpu was notable for expanding the power of the Fire Sages and beginning the first steps towards uniting the modern Fire Nation. While the Warlords themselves kept up a constant state of conflict with each other, Lord Ranpu used his influence to create neutral avenues of communication between the people of the Fire Islands, most importantly guaranteeing trade. He offered martial artist Firebender Sages as guards for any merchant vessel traveling between the islands, and personally funded free ports at the most prominent landings. One of many related projects was the construction of badly needed lighthouses, as the Warlords had at various points torn down any such existing structures.

The biggest was the lighthouse on Ember Island. It was also the first.

Ember Island itself had a varied history, but a stable one, mostly due to its proximity to the Fire Sage's seat of power, Miao Island (later 'Capital Island'). At the time of the Warlords, it was a haven for refugees, and with Fire Lord Ranpu's support, it was quickly built into a neutral meeting ground. As trade between the Fire Islands intensified, Ember Island grew into a giant bazaar, where the wealthy came to relax and shop. There is evidence that some of the Warlords even used the island as a vacation spot, traveling there in secret and staying in secluded manors.

The first of the lighthouse's caretakers was an older Firebender couple who had fled from Warlord Qinzhuo's attack on Chung-Ling. They had helped organize their fellow refugees, and when Fire Lord Ranpu himself came to lay the first stone of the lighthouse's construction, he asked them to live in the structure once it was completed, and to make sure that the light would always shine for the brave sailors who traveled between the Lands of Fire.

Their names were Haiyuan and Shuishou, and by the time they died, they were the poorest people on Ember Island.

* * *

**~Rumor~**

"So," Arata asked, "can you tell me happened to the previous caretaker? Most everyone else won't talk about it."

The child servant dropped the chest she had been dragging towards the lighthouse and turned to stare. "You haven't heard?"

"I wouldn't be asking if I knew." Arata frowned in what he meant to be a stern manner before continuing. "And be careful with that. The wood is old. Older than me."

Ignoring the chest, the kid said, "The last caretaker died."

"Yes, I know that much, but-"

"They say he put rocks in his pockets and jumped off the top of the lighthouse."

"...what?"

The kid turned to look at the top of the structure, but quickly averted her gaze back towards Arata. "He was a mean old man," she whispered, "and was always complaining about how he didn't get no respect for working the lighthouse. Said even the servants here lived better than he did."

Arata scratched his head. "So he killed himself?"

"Not a'cause of that. My mom told me that when he was young, he fell in love with a rich girl from the other side of the island, but she was promised to a one of her father's friends. The old caretaker thought he could get her to come live with him, but she wouldn't talk to him. Turned out she really loved the guy she was supposed to marry, but the caretaker didn't believe she could be happy with someone older than her, and thought she just wanted the money. So he kept coming around, and they told him to go away and not come back. One night, he followed them out to a play, and on the way home, he killed them with a shovel and chopped up the bodies."

Arata considered that tale, but the only comment he could think of was, "Why would the caretaker of a lighthouse have a shovel? It's all rocks around here."

The girl crossed her arms. "I dunno, that's the story. He killed them with the shovel and dumped their chopped up bodies in the water right over there. 'xcept they came back as ghosts, and haunted him his whole life. Getting the beacon to go on and off, making noises like other people were in the lighthouse, showing faces in the dark. They say the ghosts screamed in old caretaker's dreams. His hair was gray when he was still young, and they never left the whole time he got old. So last week, he finally got so insane from it all that he put rocks in his pockets and jumped. Same spot of water where he dumped the bodies."

Arata laughed in the daylight and refreshing sea breeze, and said, "So, I guess the lighthouse is still haunted."

"I dunno," the servant girl shrugged. "Maybe. Or maybe the ghosts are happy now that he's dead and went to Agni's Skies."

Arata rolled his eyes, and hefted another bag to bring into his new home. "Nice story. If I find the shovel, I'll let you have it for a silver piece. Now come on, bring that chest inside if you want your coins. There aren't any ghosts in Agni's daylight."

Later, it turned out that the stairs of the lighthouse liked to creak by themselves in the dark of the night. Arata had trouble getting to sleep.

* * *

**~Insanity~**

Mayor Dengtuzi and Kinnitanik of the North arrived together at the Ember Island Lighthouse just as the sun was setting. The Mayor hammered on the door with his fist while he smiled at the Waterbender beside him. "This lighthouse is the oldest in the Fire Nation. Note the inscription above the door, here. It was a famous line from the speech Fire Lord Ranpu gave when he laid the first stone of its construction."

Kinnitanik looked up at the characters carved into the stone. "Better to light a candle than curse the darkness," she read.

Dengtuzi nodded. "It's now a rather famous adage, here in the Fire Nation. As long as we're here, the caretaker, Chunu, should be getting ready to the light the lantern. I'm sure he'll be happy to give a tour of this cherished piece of Fire Nation history to such an important visiting dignitary. If he answers the door anytime soon. I'm sure it will be the perfect ending to your day, hm?"

Kinnitanik stiffly ran a hand through her long dark hair and gave a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "This has been a wonderful day, exploring the Fire Nation's busiest island. With you. Leading me to what you consider its best features. All day. With not a moment to myself."

Dengtuzi grinned broadly and puffed his chest out a little. This was a very delicate operation, because there was significantly more of his belly than his chest, and puffing one independently of the other took lots of practice. Even more impressive was that he was able to do this while maintaining a knocking motion with his fist, although that seemed to have pushed his brain to its limits. As a result, he completely missed that the lighthouse's front door had finally opened.

Kinnitanik put a hand to her mouth and gasped, "Mayor! His face!"

Dengtuzi turned to see that he had been knocking on the lighthouse caretaker's face for the past few seconds. "Ah, dreadfully sorry, Chunu." He smoothly moved his hands behind his back.

The younger man blinked, and gently rubbed his sore nose. "No problem, Mayor. It was never a very nice nose, anyway. Is there something I can do for you?"

Mayor Dengtuzi motioned theatrically at the woman beside him. "This is Kinnitanik of the Northern Water Tribe. She's a Master Waterbender, and has come to the Fire Nation to negotiate for her tribe in regards to some trade agreements. Of course, while she was here in the Land of the Risen Sun, she simply _had_ to see Ember Island."

Chunu smiled at the tourist in blue, and bowed formally. "Welcome to our beautiful home, Master... Kinni... Kinnita... um..."

"Kinnitanik," the Waterbender said, a small smile on her own face as well. "It's okay, it's not a common name in the Water Tribe, either. It means 'dark hair,' you know." She again ran a hand through her long tresses, and setting the obsidian hair shining in the sun. Even in the Fire Nation, such deep shading would have been exceptional.

Dengtuzi's eyes lingered on the sight of the woman, before he turned back to Chunu. "I promised her a look inside the lighthouse. Perhaps we can watch you light the lantern? Or..." Dengtuzi's grin grew as he had what passed for a clever moment. "It would be nice if you let Kinnitanik light the lantern herself."

Chunu blanched, his face whitening, although in the light of the setting sun it looked like it became more orange. "Uh... well, you see," he stammered, "there's a... well, it's a tradition..."

Dengtuzi frowned. "Get to the point."

"Well, this tradition, it... well, I guess it's more of a... curse."

"A curse," Dengtuzi repeated.

"Yes." Chunu licked his lips, and lowered his gaze. "Foreigners are... well, they say that any foreigner who lights the lantern will be cursed by the Spirits of the seas here. They honor the lighthouse as the property of the Fire Nation, and so it is forever bound to the blood of our people. Sir."

"Chunu, so help me, if you don't let her-"

"It's all right," Kinnitanik interrupted, "I'm happy to respect your culture and traditions. The Northern Water Tribe is very big on tradition, itself, you know."

Dengtuzi's jaw worked for a bit, but eventually he nodded in sullen agreement. "Very well. But we can still watch the lighting, can't we?"

Chunu nodded eagerly. "Come on in. I was just about to do it."

The trio entered the lighthouse and immediately began scaling the stairs. Chunu and Kinnitanik managed the long climb without difficult, but Dengtuzi was panting for breath by the time they reached the Lantern Room. "Ah, my feet," he groaned as ascended the last step. The fat mayor kicked off his sandals and then picked one up to use as a fan. "So, Chunu, are you sure about this curse... ?"

"Positive," the caretaker said. "Now, back up a little. This will flare a bit. Oh, Lady Dark Hair, please take a step to your right. You don't want to be blinded by the beacon." Satisfied with everyone's position, Chunu took a deep breath, fixed his body into a Firebending stance, and then snapped his hands outward in the direction of the lantern. The colza oil within, made from the seeds of wild cabbage, was caressed by a thin wave of flames that appeared out of thin air, and then ignited with a burst of fire. A wave of heat pulsed outward from the sudden blaze, passing over its small audience.

Two intense beams of light leaped out from the lantern. Kinnitanik's hair reflected the ambient illumination like the still waters of a shallow pond.

Chunu smiled at the sight. "Here, come on down a level, and I'll show you how I set the gears so that the lantern will rotate." The other two politely turned to face him, and it was then that all three came to a surprising realization.

The sandal in Dengtuzi's hand was on fire.

"Uh oh," said Chunu.

"AHHHHH!" said Dengtuzi.

"Oh my!" said Kinnitanik.

"AHHHHH!" said Dengtuzi again. Then he dropped the slipper to the floor. The _wooden _floor. The fire eased its way off the slipper and began working across the Lantern Room.

"AHHHHH!" said Chunu, apparently feeling the need to join in the fun.

"I'll get it!" said Kinnitanik. She then took a stance of her own, and waved her arms toward the increasingly burning patch of floor.

Nothing happened. Chunu and Dengtuzi looked up at her in alarm.

"Wait for it," Kinnitanik said, her black hair shining with spots of reflected red from the blaze. Three seconds later, a wave of salt water appeared outside the glass walls, flying upward and throwing itself on top of the lighthouse. When the water hit, it soaked its way into the Lantern Room. The result was very much like getting pounded by a highly focused tidal wave. The glass walls shook, and the fires were all drenched.

And so, even though they weren't on fire in the first place, were Chunu and Dengtuzi.

Kinnitanik put her hands to her mouth, suppressing a giggle. "Oops."

Chunu looked at his mayor, shrugged, and said, "Well, I guess we learned something."

"And what, pray tell, is that?" Dripping wet, Dengtuzi did not look like he was in a learning mood.

Nevertheless, Chunu grinned. "Wetter to light a sandal than to curse the dark tress."

* * *

**~Destiny~**

Admiral Kim Ti of the Fire Navy stood in the Lantern Room of Ember Island's lighthouse and watched the enemy fleet on the sunlit horizon. "Spyglass," she hissed.

Lieutenant Jomeru immediately produced the requested telescope and handed it over, then quickly moved to the writing desk set up on the floor right beside the giant lantern. He was a good soldier, and Kim Ti had been quite diligent in making sure he knew that time was going to be of the essence. The reign of the Fire Lord might depend their actions here.

"It's a sizable force," the admiral said, gazing at the ships. There was no need to say anything more than that, although the words failed to convey the cold dread growing in her stomach. "Hard to say from just this once glance, but I'd weigh that the earlier estimates of one thousands ships were not inaccurate."

Jomeru wrote that down without commenting.

Kim Ti focused the spyglass on the largest ship in the cluster, the one leading the rest southward around Ember Island's coast. "The lead vessel looks like a schooner, three masts, but there are structures on the deck that appear to be chimneys. Wait... yes, I see the sidewheel. It's one of the Warlord's _charred_ steamships! The rest of the fleet... I see siege ships, and coastal fighters. And... yes, many troop carriers. There's..."

The admiral lowered the spyglass, and looked to her subordinate. "There's enough for an invasion."

Jomeru paled, his brush held frozen over his paper. "How bad?" he squeaked.

"Enough to invade. Enough to win. The Fire Lord has to withdraw herself and her army from Miao Island. Note in the letter that this is my personal evaluation."

The lieutenant quickly returned to his writing.

Kim Ti herself walked away from the view, her back straight and her steps crisp despite the crushing despair and anxiety she felt, passing outside the Lantern Room to the railed walkway around it. A cluster of Messenger Hawks, military trained, were perched on the metal railing, but the admiral only had eyes for one. The bird was bigger than the rest, and its feathers shone with an unusually bright shade of red. Kim Ti untied its leg, and let the hawk climb up onto her arm. "Fly fast," she whispered to it. "Fly true. The Fire Lord and her army are depending on your word. Fail, or arrive late, and their last stand will be both brave and completely worthless."

Jomeru brought over the first copy of the letter. Kim Ti took it with a grateful node and slid it into the tube on the hawk's back. "Do your duty," she said, and raised her arm to send it away.

As the bird flew off in the same direction as the enemy fleet, the admiral led her subordinate back into the lighthouse. "And we will do ours, lieutenant. Copies of this report need to go out to all the other admirals. If the rebel Warlords succeed in overthrowing the Fire Lord, at least we can reunite the nation in her name. And even if our message arrives in time for her to escape, we'll still have to help her take back Miao Island."

A year later, Kim Ti was one of the officers standing behind the Fire Lord in Caldera City when Miao was renamed and the Capital re-established.

* * *

**~Beacon~**

Roku had no idea where he was. As a freshly realized Avatar, this would not be very good for his reputation, if anyone learned about it. Fortunately, the dragon underneath him seemed surer of its position. Together, Roku and Fang flew through the night, rushing to the Capital Island of the Fire Nation.

It had been twelve years since Roku had seen his friends, and he was eager to get back to them.

Too eager, perhaps. Otherwise, he might have realized the problems with flying through the night. Namely, the lack of light to see by.

Clutching Fang's giant head a little tighter, Roku shut his eyes and thought of home. When he left the Fire Nation to train as the Avatar, he had been only sixteen. Prince Sozin had been his only real friend, but there had been a girl, Ta Min, who was very nice. They had talked some, but thanks to his shyness, most of what he knew about her came from extensive long range observation. They were both nobles in the Capital, and the social scene was every bit as busy as the political side of life. Sozin's father, the Fire Lord, was the one of the first undisputed rulers of a united Fire Nation, and that was cause for both much work and much celebration.

That man had died, while Roku was training. Sozin would be Fire Lord, now.

And Roku was the Avatar.

Things changed, time passed. Perhaps Ta Min was married and raising children. She could have even left the Fire Nation. It certainly wouldn't be a betrayal, on her part. She couldn't know that Roku thought highly of her, not the way he had always wound up frozen with awkwardness whenever she was near.

But now Roku was the Avatar. And with the power to command storms, infernos, and mountains came the self-confidence to talk to a pretty, kind-hearted girl. The right kind of bitter work paid off in more ways than one, and did wonders for your perspective.

Now Roku just had to get back home, Preferably without flying in circles all night. He opened his eyes, and once more let his gaze try to pierce through the darkness. To his surprise, he succeeded. The endless field of dark clouds and black water was broken by a color in the distance. No, not a color. A light. A massive, bright light that was fighting against the dead of night.

Roku smiled when he realized what it was.

He didn't need to say anything to Fang. The dragon sensed Roku's attention moving outward, and turned in accordance with the slight pressure that was being applied to his horns. Wings flapped to win altitude, and a slight dive increased their speed through the air. In no time at all, the dragon and the Avatar were circling above the Ember Island Lighthouse.

Roku had many fond memories of the place. While the Capital had grown more populated as the social heart of a peaceful Fire Nation, it had siphoned off much of the traffic and trade that used to flow to Ember Island, leaving the latter as primarily a vacation spot for the noble class. Roku's family owned property not far from the island's lighthouse, and the huge beams of light were in the background of all his nighttime memories. He and Sozin had hiked there, once, when they were boys, and the caretaker had let them climb all the steps to the very top. As Roku grew up, many things had changed about Ember Island, but its lighthouse was always the same. Its shape was constant, and no matter how tall Roku grew, the lighthouse was always a spear that scraped the heavens.

Even looking down at it now from the sky, with the power to call forth lava and tidal waves and tornadoes and claws of rock from the sea floor, it still had an imposing presence. Its light was still a comforting beacon in the darkness.

Knowing exactly where he was, and what direction his home was in, Roku sat back and enjoyed the rest of his trip.

* * *

**~Relic~**

Fire Lord Azulon was not aware of the warm night air, the taste of the salty sea on every breath, or his wife modeling a scandalous new swimsuit for him. This was because he had ledgers in front of him, as well as an abacus. Partially. More significantly, it was all because the young man wasn't quite right in the head.

"And look," the Princess Ilah cooed, "it completely exposes my ankles and forearms!"

Azulon gave a grunt that might, at some levels of society, be interpreted as an acknowledgement. Advanced simian societies, perhaps, but societies all the same.

"Don't you think my bathing suit is hot?" Ilah tried batting her eyelashes at her husband, which had never worked before but was still a favorite maneuver for how easy it was. It only took one small muscle for each eyelid.

Azulon finally looked up, and met his wife's gaze. He tried, at that moment, to remember why he married her. After several unsuccessful moments, he decided to take a partial victory and instead chose to remember that her father was General Shouri, and that he conquered and destroyed Taku early in the war. "I cannot recall a moment when I was more inflamed with desire for you," he eventually said. That was completely true.

Ilah made a sound halfway between saying, "Oh, thank you, Lord Husband," and going, "Oooooooooh!" She tottered off to the balcony, and looked down at the moonlit beach below. "We should get out of this stuff old house, Azu-zu. Go for a night swim!"

Azulon gave another simian grunt. This was a lot more impressive than it sounds, because Azulon had never so much as seen a monkey in his entire life. There was a lot that Azulon had never seen, but paperwork was most definitely not included. Finished with his current reading material, he shuffled the page to the back of the pile and licked his lips at the sight of a brand new army of numbers.

"Azu-zu, are there sharks in these waters? I think I recall hearing about sharks near Ember Island. Either that or Shu Jing. Or was it ostropus? I don't think I even like the taste of ostropus."

Azulon didn't even dignify that with a grunt. Instead he clicked his abacus, and frowned. Frowning used more muscles than smiling, and much more than blinking, but that was okay. Frowning was his preferred exercise routine. He only kept up with his Firebending because he could kill people with it, whereas he had yet to fatally frown at anyone. "This is completely ridiculous," he called to Ilah.

"Come to think of it, I don't think I like the taste of shark, either."

"And all this going into municipal maintenance," Azulon continued. "Do you know much the Fire Nation could be saving if we didn't have to pay for roads and public buildings and the Home Guard? We could be spending a lot more on the military if it weren't for all the citizens. Pay for that giant metal exploding gate I want to put on the entrance to the Capital's bay. What do the common people have jobs for if I have to pay to fix their roads for them?"

"Oh," Ilah called back from the balcony, "you should build a road from the palace back home right to here. Then I could keep my new bathing suit at home, get dressed in the palace, and walk over here to Ember Island when I want to swim! Oh, but then everyone would see my ankles."

Azulon was a patient person. You had to be to conquer the world, or do mathematics. This latest statement, though, had penetrated his simian-grunting defenses and assaulted his common sense with intent to kill. So at this latest statement from his wife, he jumped up and turned to glare fire-daggers at her. "You stupid wind-buffalo! How can you walk to Ember Island IF IT IS AN ISLAND?"

She stared at him in surprise, still standing on the balcony with the wind ruffling her hair and the rays of the Ember Island Lighthouse panning through the darkness behind her. "Oh, Azu-zu," she said, putting a hand to her mouth with disbelief. "You're completely correct. And if I swim here, then no one will see my ankles! Oh, how wonderful. Father was right, you are the most brilliant Fire Lord we've ever had. Please do build that road, then, underwater."

Azulon didn't respond. He had stopped listening right after the first 'Oh' and was staring past his wife. "That lighthouse," he murmured. "I wonder how much we spend on it. No one sails on this side of the island any more." He was back at his portable desk in an instant, scanning his ledgers and working his abacus like his wife worked her eyelids.

Ten minutes and sixteen sums later, an official order was signed by Fire Lord Azulon to decommission one hundred lighthouses throughout the Fire Nation, foremost the one on Ember Island.

* * *

**~Symbol~**

"As far as the local make-out points go, at least this one is out of the wind," Mai drawled.

Zuko blushed. "I didn't bring you up here so that we can make-out." Seeing his girlfriend's almost-expression, he added, "Not just to make-out." He snaked one arm around Mai's waist, and raised the other to summon a small flame. The warm light illuminated only a small space around them, but it would be enough for them to see by as they climbed the stairs. "Have you been inside the lighthouse before?"

Mai shook her head, and shifted her stance to lean a bit more against Zuko as they stepped.

"Lu Ten- you know, my cousin- brought me here when I was a boy," Zuko continued. "He was interested in it because it was part of some military history, but I don't remember the details. I was more excited by the idea of this grand tower sitting here unused by anyone." Zuko looked up into the darkness stretching above, and then back down. Shadow had once again claimed the ground floor while he wasn't paying attention. "Now it just looks dead," he muttered.

"Dead isn't bad," Mai whispered back.

Zuko turned a skeptical look towards her.

She raised a challenging eyebrow. "Well, think about it. If it weren't dead, we wouldn't get to be alone here. There would be soldiers, or lifeguards, or lantern people or someone here to annoy us. And if it were a part of the local social scene, we'd be up to our eyeballs in frisky teenagers."

"Frisky?"

"What?"

Zuko felt a smile twist his face. "Did you just call us frisky?"

Mai stopped, and considered. "Noooo," she eventually said. "We may be here to make-out, but we're not frisky. We will both be very laid back and angst-ridden about whatever romantic encounters we have here. Friskiness is for people like Ty Lee, who don't know how to relax."

Zuko nodded as they continued back up the stairs. "Sounds about right to me."

They reached the top shortly, and Zuko let the flame in his hand die away. Up here, in the Lantern Room, the moonlight passed through the glass walls unimpeded. Mai gave the setting a quick, analytical look before turning her whole attention back to Zuko. "I suppose it's a bit late to ask, now that we're here," she said, "but why was this place abandoned? It wasn't for structural problems, was it?"

Zuko shook his head. "My grandfather did it as part of a series of Reforms. The old was swept away, so that our Glorious Path could continue unimpeded. Lu Ten said that a lot of people were upset about the Fire Nation losing a part of its cherished history, but it was all just useless sentimentality, so nothing came of it."

"Typical," Mai grunted.

"What?"

"You build something, it does everything you want, but then new toys come along and all of the sudden your lighthouse is surplus." Mai turned to look around again, this time focusing beyond the glass walls and onto the sea outside. She produced a knife from somewhere in her summer wear and began twisting it around her fingers. "And people will somehow have the gall to be offended when it falls over onto a fishing yacht and kills a vacationing admiral."

Zuko sighed. "This place is depressing."

"Everywhere is depressing."

"Good point."

Mai turned back to face him again. "Didn't you say something about making out before?"

"Yes."

"Good."

* * *

**~Death~**

The people of Ember Island learned about Fire Lord Zuko's crowning the day after the event itself. That very night, they burned him in effigy. A week later, the local council met and decided that they wouldn't be sending taxes to the Capital, and any collectors who came around would be hung. Afterward, a few of council members went drinking, and the night ended with the group using ex-Minister Quapao's secret stash of blasting jelly to blow up the Ember Island Lighthouse in a vague display of protest. Historians would eventually seize on this act as a colorful fact to include in textbooks about Fire Lord Zuko's early reign.

After the explosion, Quapao and his friends retired to his Haiyuan Shuishou vacation estate, named for a pair of his ancestors who had lived on Ember Island long ago.

* * *

**~Memory~**

"She didn't even need to take a step. Amae merely leaned forward into the night sky, and suddenly the still air was in horrifying motion around her. She saw the sea, and the rocks that its waves battered relentlessly for countless ages, rush toward her, but it was for such a brief amount of time that her mind simply didn't have the opportunity to comprehend it. She died before she even fully made the decision to end her own life.

"Her family never knew that the only marker of their daughter's watery grave was the Fire Nation's oldest standing lighthouse. In truth, they scarcely would have cared.

"And so Amae's story ends, as Fire ends in Ashes.

"Well? What do you think, Sokka?"

"...okay, Mai, it's great that you're trying new hobbies. Seriously, good for you. And, you know, your story isn't incomprehensible or anything. It's a little lacking in Warrior Heroes, and a plot, and meat, but it makes sense. But, really, what makes you think I'd be interested in hearing a made-up tale about a lonely girl who jumps off a lighthouse because her parents won't let her cut all her hair off?"

"...I can't believe I ever thought we could be friends."

"...sorry? So much for world peace and getting along."

**END**


	101. Meeting of the Minds

_ASN's drabble contest wanted the White Lotus as a subject, specifically a look at some of what they were doing during the war years. I used the opportunity to imply a few bits of my personal head-canon that runs contrary to fandom opinion. As usual._

_Also, there's a few hints about my 100 Men project in here. (I'm one easy chapter away from being ready for an undetermined Beta reader.)_

* * *

**Meeting of the Minds**

It had been a long time since Iroh last donned the blue and white robes of the White Lotus. He decided that the occasion called for a black tea.

While the pot sat warming over a small fire, Iroh stepped out of his tent, and waived over a pair of fellow Lotus who were idling nearby. Night was falling over the growing camp. A handful of men appeared every day to join Iroh's gathering, but since many of the elder members preferred an early bedtime, the minority of relatively younger members were no doubt finding the nightlife just within Ba Sing Se's outermost wall to be rather dull. Hopefully, Iroh would be giving this pair of comrades an interesting time. "Good evening, sirs. Could I presume upon you for a favor?"

The one who spoke had gold eyes that didn't quite disappear in the dim light. "Of course, Grand Lotus," he said. "What can we do for you?"

"I have much I need to do tonight, finalizing our plans and enjoying a stimulating cup of tea. Could you two guard my tent, and make sure that I'm not disturbed by any but the other leaders of our Order?" Iroh smiled with a conspiratory chuckle. "I don't expect you stand beside my tent all night, of course. Just stay nearby, and keep an eye out? I don't expect anyone will give you much trouble."

Both men bowed, and the one with the gold eyes said, "It would be our pleasure, Grand Lotus."

"Oh, thank you so much!" With one last grateful grin, Iroh retreated back into his tent. The center of his little living space had been cleared out, and a large Pai Sho table had been placed right in the center. It had taken some fancy administrative and negotiating skills to get all the supplies for the camp to Ba Sing Se's farmlands without the Fire Nation noticing, but Iroh had an eye for detail, and couldn't let necessities like tea and Pai Sho fall to the wayside.

The old man sat at the large table, poured himself a cup of tea, and waited.

It didn't take long for the first to arrive. Master Pakku of the Northern Water Tribe stepped into the tent just fifteen minutes after Iroh had sat down. "Can you believe," the Waterbender groused, "that those two lumps outside tried to stop me from coming in? And what's this about a Leadership Conference? You didn't tell me about any meeting."

Iroh shrugged with good nature. "I apologize. I certainly intended to get word to you. I thought I spoke to someone about that, but perhaps I simply _meant_ to do so, and lost track of-"

Pakku curtly waved the concern away. "Well, I noticed your recruits out there and asked what was going on. Good thing I keep track of what's happening in this camp."

"Good thing," Iroh agreed, pouring a new cup of tea for his guest. "Since you're the only one here so far, we might as well discuss the availability of water in the city proper. The Upper and Middle rings have a sewer system and many privately owned water features, but in the Lower Ring, you'll need to..."

They had a productive talk, but hadn't quite finished when the ground beneath them gave a little shake, and King Bumi of Omashu popped up through a brand new dirt hole, not quite without making a mess.

Pakku blinked at him, and scowled. "Earthbenders. Was it too much trouble to just come in the right way?"

Bumi cackled (of course) and planted himself on the opposite side of the table from the Waterbender. "Actually, yes!" He gave a brief look at Iroh, and whispered, "Tea with sugar, please," before turning back to Pakku. "There I was, enjoying the night air and looking for something to do- I was hoping for a card game or something else I could play for money, but anything that didn't make me feel like I was in some kind of petting zoo for Old People would have been fine- when I sensed those two young'uns loitering outside this tent. They were talking about how they didn't know who they were supposed to be letting in, so I decided this was a private party I wanted to crash!"

"And we're going to tolerate this?" Pakku asked Iroh.

The former general nodded accommodatingly. "This is King Bumi of Omashu. His was the last city to fall before Ba Sing Se, but he recently liberated it single-handed. And we could certainly use an Earthbender's perspective for our Liberation plans, couldn't we?"

The Waterbender was eying Iroh with either great skepticism or deep suspicion, but both were fine with the hosting Grand Lotus.

"I'm sure you'll come to appreciate his unique talent," Iroh said. "I was thinking we could use Earthbending to quickly move our warriors into the city, so that the Occupation doesn't have time to focus their forces on our approach."

"Ooh! We can use the old surfboard trick! I love that one!" Bumi knocked back his tea in one gulp, then leaned forward and stared at the other two Masters. "But we're going to need something a little bigger than a surfboard, I think. We can't get all these Old People onto one board, not without a lot of very impolite shoving, but lucky for you, you have the _world's greatest Earthbender on your side_!"

They eventually got Bumi to describe something workable, although Iroh felt compelled to cut down on the sugar going into the Earthbender King's tea after the fifth cup. Iroh was just wondering if he would have to stall his two guests when voices carried through the tent's walls. His guards were talking, but their words weren't quite audible at this range. Someone _else_, though, was speaking quite clearly.

"_Get out of the way, you simpletons! I was schooling Firebenders since before you were inflicted on this tainted world of destruction!_"

Pakku grimaced and said nothing. Bumi grinned and drawled, "Definitely a Firebender."

A second later, a man with bushy gray hair and thin twin scars over one eye stomped into the tent. "_Iroh! Tell the two simpletons that I have a place here!_" Two confused faces peaked into the tent, and Iroh gave a reassuring nod, prompting them to quickly disappear again. "Thank you," the newcomer growled as he sat down at the table. He glared a challenge at both Pakku and Bumi individually, as if inviting them to protest his presence.

Pakku shrugged. Bumi winked.

"This is former Admiral Jeong-Jeong, the world's most famous deserter," Iroh said smoothly, passing over another cup of tea. "He's been living and working in the Earth Kingdom's less civilized areas for some time, and has much practical knowledge of insurgent movements. Master Jeong-Jeong, we were just discussing our plans for Ba Sing Se on the Day of Sozin's Comet. I would have invited you, but I didn't know you had arrived."

Jeong-Jeong ignored his tea and leaned heavily over the table. "The Fires of the Comet will _destroy_ the people of Ba Sing Se! _No Firebender can contain such power!_ If we take the fight to the streets of the city, _all will perish in the flames of hatred!_"

"He's giving me headache," mumbled Bumi. Then he laughed, snorted, and winked again.

"He raises a good point about civilian casualties, though," Pakku said. "We'll have to do what we can to shield the people from the collateral damage, and limit our own attacks to precise strikes against the enemy, but that will be hard for our Benders. I'll barely have enough Water to fight with, never mind if I use it up shielding everyone in the city."

Bumi tapped his prominent chin thoughtfully. "Welllll, there's plenty of Earth in Ba Sing Se (t'would be an utter disgrace if there weren't, really), but any Earthbenders will hard pressed to shield themselves from the Comet's firepower (heh), without worrying about also shielding the rest of the city. I know, I've _seen it_. Besides, if Ex-Admiral Scowly over there thought I was capable, he wouldn't have ranted like that in the first place. I can just tell, he's one of those expert types who only needs to look at ya to tell if you're a master." Bumi cackled once again. "I bet he got an eyeful out of me!"

Iroh looked to Jeong-Jeong for confirmation. For once, the man was quiet and impassive. "He is correct," the scarred Firebender said. "I can already feel the Fires anticipating the Comet's arrival. The power will be beyond imagination."

"And yet, you can imagine it quite clearly, can't you?" Iroh leaned forward, and stared into Jeong-Jeong's haunted eyes. "You've always been one of the most powerful Firebenders in the Nation. With the Comet, your own raw power should be completely overwhelming."

The Deserter flinched away from Iroh's gaze, and snarled, "_I cannot help you! I do not fight anymore. It is treacherous enough to unleash my power in the Winter, never mind on the Day of Sozin's Comet. The hate! The horror! It is too much!_"

"No one is asking you to fight," Iroh answered calmly. He picked up Jeong-Jeong's unclaimed cup of tea, and held it in his warming hands. "Your technique of creating a Wall of Flame, a purely defensive move, should be sufficient. No other Firebender alive has the power to pierce it. And I might be able to teach you a thing or two about fueling your flame with something other than hate and anger." He smiled. "Fire comes from the breath, and we have many choices when it comes to igniting it."

For a long moment, all was still. Then, tentatively, Jeong-Jeong reached out a hand, and accepted the offered tea. "It will be my honor to learn from you, Sifu Iroh."

Everyone smiled in relief.

Then they noticed that another man had joined them in the tent.

Everyone turned in alarm to stare at the newcomer, who was standing just beside the tent's entrance. He regarded them with what might have been a tinge of amusement, and casually held a sheathed sword in his hand. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything?" He was younger than the others, his hair still dark and his face unwrinkled beneath his small beard.

Pakku spoke first. "Who is this clown?"

"Whoever he is," Jeong-Jeong said as he sipped his tea, "he's more dangerous and deadly than you."

Pakku snorted in disbelief and eyed the sword in the newcomer's hand. "How did you get in here? This is a private meeting of the Grand Lotus leadership. We're not having a social occasion that you just crash."

Bumi's eyes widened. "We aren't?"

The newcomer shrugged, and moved to sit down. "While I might not have the rank of Grand Lotus just yet, I still know many things about our organization. I dare say that every important piece of information that passes through our Fire Nation networks eventually comes to me. And in the Fire Nation, we've been using our contacts for more than just Pai Sho and idle philosophy for quite some time. Although, I suppose that in the Northern Water Tribe, you wouldn't hear much about that, would you, Master Pakku?"

The cranky Waterbender threw his hands into the air. "Does everyone around here have a trick they need to show off? King Bumi, do you want to make a coin disappear for us?"

The Earthbender grinned. "I can do that, actually. Want to see?"

Jeong-Jeong was ignoring the banter, and finally turned his full attention to the newcomer. "Who are you? And as much power as you may wield in the Fire Nation, what gives you the right to sit at this table? You are but a swordsman."

The man nodded. "I am just a swordsman, but even a Bender of your caliber should not underestimate the reach and versatility of a mere blade, Master Jeong-Jeong. I have probably killed enough in the war to equal you and General Iroh. Perhaps more than you, since you spent so much of your career in Navy Command.

"I am Piandao."

Jeong-Jeong's eyes widened momentarily, and then he gave a short bow and went back to his tea. Iroh was as passive as always, and Bumi was completely ignoring everyone else in favor of stirring some more sugar into his latest cup. Only Pakku was still on the defensive. "Sadly, your name apparently didn't make it up to the Northern Water Tribe. I still haven't heard why you should have a voice in this discussion. Who sponsored you into the White Lotus, anyway?"

Piandao didn't answer. Instead, another man sitting at that table raised a hand.

It was Bumi.

"You're joking," Pakku said.

Bumi shook his head, all amusement gone from his face for the first time all night. "Piandao may not be as notorious a Deserter as Jeong-Jeong (although I think that's only because of his lack of political connections, really), but his betrayal of the Fire Nation was just as powerful. He has sought the Wisdom our Order reveres with a unique single-mindedness, and even before I sponsored him, he already showed all the signs of truly being one of us. He may be one of the world's most proliferate killers, but he has come to respect Life, and Philosophy, and he now lives his life in true accordance with our ideals. He is one of the best men I have the pleasure of knowing."

Eyes wide at Bumi's seriousness, Pakku nodded. "I can respect that. Welcome, Piandao of the Fire Nation."

"Thank you," the swordsman said smoothly. "I may never have had Jeong-Jeong's political connections, but I spent my entire life in the military, both in command and on the frontlines. From what I've heard, you all made very good, very necessary plans, but now it's time for my perspective. Gentlemen, it's time to talk... basic logistics. We need to organize a patrol for this camp, take care to keep the smoke of our fires from becoming visible from the city proper, not to mention everything for the day of our invasion. I assume we're waiting for the Day of the Comet because we won't have the firepower to break in as an army beforehand? Well, we also have to worry about what comes after. We need to preserve food and water. We need to get a team up to the palace before the fighting is done, so that we can seize control of the government. Not to mention getting someone to sew us up some flags, so that the civilians in the city don't think we're some kind of evil mountain cult come to sacrifice them to the Comet. Flags are political. They reassure commoners."

Piandao smiled softly. "Take it from a real soldier, this is the type of thing we want to plan out ahead of time."

Iroh nodded. His brain trust has assembled itself, and it was time to guide them to a plan that would fulfill his youthful visions, and liberate Ba Sing Se from the evils of his own nation. "Sounds like we have a long night yet," he said brightly. "I'll put another pot of tea on."

Everyone groaned.

**END**


	102. The Horror

**The Horror**

When Fire Lord Zuko began prosecuting war criminals from the Hundred Year War, reactions were mixed, not the least among the illegal fugitives-at-large in the Earth Kingdom. Some of them committed suicide, many changed their names to 'Lee' and moved to a low-traffic neighborhood, and most of the rest didn t do anything at all differently until it came time to put up a fight and be taken in the hard way.

Vachir, former member of both the Yu Yan Archers and the Rough Rhinos special operatives, snuck into Ba Sing Se and personally surrendered to Retired-General Iroh at his cafe in the Upper Ring. They had tea in the back room while they waited for someone qualified to arrest the archer.

"What I never got," Vachir said at one point, "is why you came to like this dump of a country."

Iroh simply smiled. "Well, you know the old Sun Warrior legends about cannibalism?"

Vachir shook his head.

"They claim that if you eat a part of your defeated opponent, you absorb their power. Eat the eyes, and get better vision. Eat the heart, and inherit your enemy's bravery. In their ancient, darker days, they let their warriors indulge in this practice. That was before they gave up on the human sacrifice, naturally."

Vachir frowned, but nodded for his host to continue.

"I heard this legend," Iroh went on, "and wondered about it as I swept through the Earth Kingdom, conquering and killing. I was learning a certain admiration for the best of the enemies I faced, and eventually came to wonder how I might best learn from their strengths. Of course, you can see where I m going with this. It was a horrible thing to do, but I was impressed by a nation that wouldn't back down, and- I will admit this now- I lusted for that power. So I cannibalized the land I was trying to conquer."

Vachir squinted at the fat old man who sat across from him, usually so jovial and relaxed. Was he implying-

Iroh turned a haunted look on his guest. "I procured samples of their teas, and drank it _all_," he whispered. "Now look at me. I may as well have been born Earth Kingdom."

They were still arguing about two hours later, when Vachir was formally arrested by an Avatar who had been flown in special for the occasion.

**END**

* * *

****_Author's Note: I love the smell of ginseng in the morning. Smells like victory.  
_


	103. Cold Shoulders

**Cold Shoulders**

It never really snowed in the Gaipan Forest, but, apparently, no one told the weather that day.

Longshot made his way carefully through tree branches, wary of icy patches, while behind him, the newest Freedom Fighter followed at the same slow pace. Neither was used to navigating, or even seeing, the forest like this, all covered in snow. Although Gaipan experienced a cold winter every year, sometimes including snowfall, the white stuff rarely came in quantities larger than a dusting, and it never stayed for more than a day. This morning's storm, though, had left a good foot of the stuff on the ground, leaving everything looking rather strange.

For the Gaipan Forest had an interesting quirk: its trees never dropped their leaves. In most other places, cold weather brought the transition from green leaves to yellows and reds and oranges, followed by the falling that left the branches skeletal. Gaipan, though, never experienced that last step. The leaves changed colors, but stayed on their branches, unless torn off by winds or storms. In the spring, the leaves came to life again, shining verdantly amidst all the new flowers. Some said that the forest was Spirit-touched. Opinion seemed divided equally about whether this was an omen of good or bad fortune, but all the locals agreed that it had been this way for the last hundred years.

Perhaps the snowfall wasn't so strange. As Longshot moved silently along, the archer decided that ever-living red leaves were rather pretty beneath the icy flakes. It wasn't entirely bad seeing it all with a girl walking with him, either.

Of course, the nice scenery came with its own dangers. The Freedom Fighters had designed all their camouflage based on the forest's regular Winter reds, so having everything suddenly turn white had left the main base exposed. Jet was worried enough about it to send the Freedom Fighters out to check on things and make sure that no one was around to cause trouble. While the air was currently still, Sneers predicted that the storm would be returning later that night, and it would be all too easy for a Fire Nation traveler or scout to hide in the weather after getting a good look at a certain treehouse village.

And so Longshot and his temporary partner were making a loop through the territory east of the base, looking for danger and trying not to fall out of a tree.

Longshot wasn't entirely sure about this partner business. Smellerbee seemed competent enough, in the four months she'd been with the team, proving to be a quick learner with swords and blades. She was quite devoted to Jet's ideals, and a great fighter against the Fire Nation. She was the only female member of the main Freedom Fighters team, but that certainly wasn't a problem for anyone.

Still, Longshot wasn't entirely working with new people. Strangers, really, were kind of scary, and Longshot liked to know someone for a full year before he stopped considering them a stranger. In the four months since Smellerbee had arrived, their interactions consisted solely of Longshot sniping a soldier or two who had been hoping to sneak up on her, just like he did for all the other Freedom Fighters. But could he rely as easily on her, in a pinch?

Behind him, Smellerbee spoke in her low, scratchy voice. "Hey, are you cold? _I_ am."

Longshot thought about it as he eased himself down to a lower branch. Eventually, he just shrugged.

Smellerbee hopped down after him. "I should have brought an extra cloak," she said. "I thought my armor would be warmer."

Longshot nodded noncommittally.

"You're not the easiest person to have a conversation with, are you?"

Longshot turned to look at Smellerbee. It was a completely valid observation, but it was one that people didn't normally make. Still, all he could do was nod vigorously, and then move on.

They continued on their patrol until Longshot noticed a large dark shape at the base of a tree in the distance. They moved a little quicker to investigate. To Longshot's eye, it looked like a covered transport wagon, although definitely not military. Sure enough, once they got close, that's exactly what it proved to be. It was crashed into the trunk of the tree, and there were no signs in the snow of either a driver or an animal to pull it.

By the time the pair reached it, the snow had already started falling. It was a bit early yet, but maybe it would wait a while to get worse.

"Hey, there's some good stuff here," Smellerbee said from within the wagon's flatbed.

Longshot peaked in for a look.

"There's some standard supplies- flour, blankets, rope, candles- that I bet they wanted to sell in town, but also some fun stuff. They got some sweets, nuts, fancy chopsticks, dishes, some metalwork... all kinds of things."

Longshot swept his gaze over all of it. That was a nice haul, but only if they could get it back to the hideout before someone else found it. He and Smellerbee could just fill up a couple of sacks, and bring back what they could carry on the rest of their patrol, but that wouldn't be much. Play it safe, or take a risk for the whole treasure?

Smellerbee noticed his ambivalent look, and grinned. The red stripes of war paint she also wore made it look quite predatory. "Let's take it all. We can pull the cart back, and there isn't anyone out there right now. We can cut the patrol short and probably be back before the snow really starts falling."

Yes, that was probably the best idea. The others had their own patrols, and neither Longshot nor Smellerbee had seen any trouble. Having all the supplies would be better for the Freedom Fighters than simply completing the patrol.

Longshot nodded at his partner.

"Sweet," she said, her facing settling down into an easy smile. "Let's get hitched!"

Longshot quirked an eyebrow at that.

She might have started blushing beneath her war paint, but it was hard to tell with the paint's red color. "Hitched _up_. With rope. You know, so that we can pull the cart?"

Ah. That made much more sense.

It turned out to be slow going, dragging the cart. Longshot decided, after the second hour of pulling the thing along, that the cart had to have been previously hitched to those rhinos the Fire Nation loved. Nothing else would have been strong enough to get the thing going fast enough to crash into a tree. Of course, that could have just been the muscle fatigue talking. The snow on the ground was adding to the difficulty, and as new flakes fell from the sky, the ground became both rougher and more slippery.

And it sure was snowing a lot harder, now. Pretty windy, too. Good thing he always wore a hat, even one this flimsy.

Smellerbee's thoughts must have been in the same vein as Longshot's. She turned to reveal her that face and hair were both all frosted over. "We're not going to get this thing back before the storm really hits. We need shelter!"

Longshot nodded. He began looking around, trying to figure out where they were-

Smellerbee pointed a finger into the distance and said, "I think there's a cave right over that way! Come on, one last pull to get the cart over there."

Longshot squinted in that direction as they pulled the cart along. Yes, he _did_ recognize this place. Smellerbee was right, there should be a small gully in that direction that would be dry this time of year, and there were various small caverns exposed in the rocky walls.

That was pretty good of her to remember and recognize this land. She had only been a Freedom Fighter for four months!

They found the specific cave that Smellerbee remembered. It was only about six feet deep, and not quite tall enough for Longshot to stand at his full height. They pulled the cart right up the entrance, and turned it around so that the open back jutted right up into the cave's entrance. The wagon's covering would protect them from the wind and snow, and they would have access to the supplies if they need them. As soon as things were settled, Longshot immediately pulled some scrap wood off the cart, and spun one of his arrows to friction-heat it into a small fire. That would warm them up quickly, and the archer placed some loose stones in a circle around it so that they would absorb the heat and continue to keep the cavern comfortable even after the blaze died down.

Then the pair of Freedom Fighters was left with nothing to do but wait.

They sat next to each other to conserve heat, and stared at the fire.

"So," Smellerbee said, "crazy weather we're having, huh?"

Longshot nodded.

"Yeah, crazy weather. All... snowy."

Longshot nodded.

"I'm not sure if I like snow. It's been kind of troublesome so far."

Longshot shrugged, and looked up at the top of the little cave's entrance. The cart didn't fit in precisely, but the accumulated snow was piling together and sealing it off, trapping the heat in nicely.

"Yeah," Smellerbee said, following his gaze, "I guess it would be worse if it were rain."

Longshot nodded.

They sat together for another few moments in silence, and then Smellerbee stood up. "Hey, I have an idea. You hungry? Or thirsty?"

Longshot nodded agreeably.

Smellerbee grinned, and climbed into the cart. Longshot heard the sounds of her shifting through the supplies, and then she popped out again with her hands full. "Check this out!" She laid down a pair of metal mugs, and then displayed a pile of brick-shaped somethings wrapped in paper. "I found these in the candy stash. It's called chocolate. You ever try any?"

Longshot shook his head.

"Well," Smellerbee said, leaning closer to him, "I'm going to let you try it the best way I know. We melt a little snow for water in the mugs, and then we add the chocolate pieces and heat it all up over the fire. Trust me, you'll like it."

They did as she said, and before long, the smell of rich sweetness filled the little cavern. Smellerbee took one mug, and gave the other to Longshot. The archer stared into it, studying the brown liquid. It looked a little like mud, but the color and smell were just the opposite of disgusting. Gingerly, so as not to burn his tongue, Longshot sipped at it.

Huh.

_That was good._

He smiled at Smellerbee.

She nodded, and sat back against the cave wall, sipping from her own mug. The way her body settled, her shoulder was pressed up against Longshot's. They sat that way in comfortable silence for a long while, sipping at their hot chocolate. The fire eventually burned low, but the stones around it still glowed. Longshot could still make out the shape of Smellerbee's face when she finally spoke again. "Hey, Longshot?"

He nudged her gently in acknowledgement.

"You're a pretty cool guy to hang out with. We're friends, right?"

He nodded vigorously. He might have given a different answer this morning, but Smellerbee was apparently very good at learning things quickly. Given more time, he wondered what their new friendship might progress to.

As the snow raged outside, the two Freedom Fighters leaned together a little more in the warm darkness.

**END**


	104. Beta Testing

_This piece was written for the latest round of the Avatar Spirit Drabble Contest, and had to feature as the "cornerstone" of the piece the character of Lian from the first A:TLA video game. Search for her on the A:TLA wiki if you want more info, but as is usual with that wiki, beware unsourced information._

* * *

**Beta Testing**

It was supposed to be just another appearance in the one-time colonies. Zuko would give a speech trying to reassure everyone that breaking off from both the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation would be a good thing for the people, and then he would make a show of having the Local Experience, visiting a few vendors or getting something to eat while the whole village watched. It was hopefully a nice reflection on his reign as Fire Lord that Zuko had gotten good at this type of thing.

Occasionally, some people would take offense to his speech, or ideas, or existence, and try to cause a scene. Toph's students were pretty good at rooting out any potential assassins ahead of time, so the worst Zuko usually had to deal with were some jeers and thrown cabbages. (Pelting a Firebender with rocks, no matter how small, could cause a major incident. The Avatar had officially declared it a Hate Crime, although not everyone got the idea behind it.) The Crimson Guards could handle that kind of thing, and they had long ago gotten used to not hurting anyone even as they dragged them away.

Zuko should have known that the real enemy would evolve.

He should have known that he still had real enemies out there.

It was in the city of Sae Lo Oon. Mai had accompanied him on this trip, and they were standing on a wooden platform that had been built expressly for Zuko's appearance here in the middle of the central square "...keeping your local leaders if you desire, but instead of looking to the Fire Nation or Ba Sing Se, they will look to the council in Republic Center," he was saying. Many in the audience were looking at him with skepticism plain in their faces, but Zuko was okay with that. It meant they were thinking about what he was saying, instead of just rejecting it outright. "You will still pay taxes, but only directly to your local leadership, and they in turn will-"

"_YOU'RE NOT ABOVE US ANYMORE!_"

It was a full scream. Zuko was startled out of his recitation, and the crowd began murmuring and looking around for the source. It didn't take them long. The man was shoving his way to the front of the gathering, and he didn't exactly blend in with everyone else. His hair and beard were long and looked unwashed, his face was flushed as red as Zuko's best summer robes, and his skinned glistened with sweat. The man was wearing a robe of his own that was oversized on him, the sleeves so long that they covered his hands, but it was left untied and open to reveal the completely ragged one-piece tunic underneath. Zuko thought he could even smell the guy, despite the distance between them.

And he didn't stop shouting. "_YOU CAN'T OPPRESS ME ANYMORE! IT'S WITHIN ME NOW! AND YOU CAN'T TAKE IT OUT!_"

Out of the corner of his eye, Zuko caught Mai making a discreet motion to the guards. She never liked it when someone in the crowd was hiding their hands. For good reason, Zuko knew.

"_YOU THINK I'M NOTHING, BUT SHE MADE ME INTO ONE OF YOU! YOU CAN'T STOP US! WHAT KILLS ME WILL KILL YOU FIRST! THE AIR CALLS FOR REVENGE!_"

Foaming was bubbling around the man's mouth. The guards were on either side of him now, reaching to restrain him, but he ignored them, keeping his eyes focused on Zuko.

"_KILL ALL THE BENDERS!_"

The guards grabbed him, as the crowd's murmuring grew angry; there were both Firebenders and Earthbenders amongst them. Zuko's unease was only growing, and he took a defensive stance without even thinking about it. Mai stepped forward, and Zuko heard the quiet scrape of thin metal against leather.

Then a high-pitched chime sounded.

"_NOW I HAVE THE POWER TO KILL YOU ALL!_"

"Did his stomach," Mai whispered as she brought her knives up, "just ding?"

A moment later, the man exploded.

At least, that's what it looked liked to Zuko. _Something_ caused his bulky robe to flair out like the wind caught it, and the two guards were pushed away by something a little stronger than a desperate shove. Also, there was the matter of the robe's sleeves shredding somewhere in the blur of motion centered on the man, and when everything went still again, _his arms were gone_.

Then Zuko realized what he was truly seeing. The man's arms weren't gone. They had been _replaced_. _By metal blades._ As Zuko felt his jaw drop, the blades clicked and angled all by themselves. They split and slid, forming a four-bladed _propeller fan _just forward of each of the man's elbows.

Then the fans began whirring to life.

Mai threw a knife at his head.

The man twitched reflexively, and even though the fans weren't going very fast yet, he brought them up as though to block the projectile. Zuko didn't even realize it had worked until after he heard the clang of metal against metal, but Mai's knife had not only impacted against the nub at the center of one of the fans, but it was _sticking there_.

A lodestone?

Either way, Mai didn't care. She was tossing blades into the air like there was no tomorrow. (She might be right.) Her movements were answered by continued clanking, like raindrops on a metal roof, as the man- _the assassin_- continued to catch the projectiles with his seeking-stone metal fans. Zuko took a deep breath, and prepared to bring his Firebending into play.

Fire didn't stick to anything without burning it.

The time from the assassin's initial 'explosion' to Zuko throwing his first fireball was about five seconds, total. In that time, the fans had sped up enough to create a notable wind. Faster than he had any right to be, the assassin angled the fans and screamed. The wind flared, yanking at Zuko's robes, and he had a flashback to his teenager years as the burst of air stopped and dissipated his flying flames.

Okay, this might be a problem.

Well, there were other ways to survive an assassination attempt. Zuko grabbed Mai's hand and yanked her along as he ran away like Koh himself was after them. Except the whirring sound flared, and Zuko found himself bowled over by a blast of wind that felt as hard as a rock.

Oh, yeah, that's what it was like.

"_THE BENDERS ARE DEAD! LONG LIVE THE NEW BENDERS!_"

Zuko stirred himself off the ground and looked up to find the assassin looming over him. The fans were still going, and the man raised one as though to bring it down on Zuko's head, but Mai was back in the game, and she threw herself at the assassin's waist. She didn't mass much without her knives weighing her down, but she was strong, and the assassin tottered with ebbing balance as she tangled herself around his legs. Zuko scrambled back to his feet, but maintained his position, and took a very specific stance. He searched for the Qi with himself, and then took it in a firm mental grip and ripped the positive energy from the negative energy. He felt a sucking imbalance within, but held the energies apart for a long moment.

The assassin flicked an arm downward, and the space where the blades of one of the fans were spinning suddenly flared red. Mai cried out and went limp. The man kicked at her, and his manic strength sent her rolling across the ground away from confrontation.

Good.

Zuko let the two halves of his Qi come crashing back together.

Die, jerk.

The assassin was quick, Zuko had to give him that. He brought both of his arm-fans up in defense just before the blinding flash. At this distance, the crack of thunder sounded immediately. The man didn't even have time to scream. The force of the lightning strike threw Zuko back, but over the smell of ozone, he thought he caught the scent of cooking meat.

The cleanup that came next was no fun. Additional Royal Firebender Guards arrived, and immediately sequestered both Zuko and Mai and put them in the hands of a military medic. (Zuko made a point to concede to Sokka that bringing one along was a good idea, after all.) The townspeople had scattered early, and Zuko couldn't bring himself to blame them for not risking their lives against a living monster to save the Fire Lord.

Two guards were tasked with recovering the pieces of the assassin. Whatever had been put into his body to power those fans, it didn't like lightning. The metal parts were the only recognizable remnants. Looking over a pair of charred metal fans much later, Mai had only one thing to say. "_What_ the _flambé_ was _that_?" She didn't normally curse, but then, she didn't normally have stitches in her back.

Zuko could only shake his head. "The first, I guess."

* * *

From the balcony of her rented suite, she saw it all. No sooner had the fight ended than she had wheeled over to her desk to make notes. "HUGE SUCCESS," she had written at the top. Of course, this early in the testing process, there were still some bugs to work out. She made sure to record that additional pain management would be needed, if just for the sake of future subjects' sanity. The human mind was weak, and could only take so much trauma before it became unhinged. Had the test subject been thinking clearly, he might have at least taken out the Royal Consort.

No matter. That's what tests were for.

And though her own body might be broken, a legacy of her brief conflict with the Avatar, Lian had plenty of willing and healthy test subject candidates.

Completing her notes, she pushed her wooden wheelchair across the rented room to the small closet, and began tossing clothes into a travel sack. Field tests were always fun, but she couldn't wait to get back home.

The future awaited her.

**END**


	105. Lucky Day

**Lucky Day**

For Guardsman Quong, life had taken a turn for the worse in Ba Sing Se.

It wasn't that being a Guardsman was a bad life, before now. Being stationed on The Wall, that was a _true_ hardship. Not that Quong had ever been to The Wall- no, he was a respectable Middle Ring boy- but he heard stories. The food was shipped from a military kitchen in the Lower Ring, and the main diet out there was reheated juk and old vegetables. Plus, there were... _incidents_ out on The Wall. No one was allowed to even think of the specifics, but when hard times were upon The Wall, the Earthbenders came back with burn scars on their arms, and sometimes their faces. And sometimes- well, sometimes people didn't come back at all. Six years ago, just before Guardsman Quong had joined the Palace Guard, a whole _lot _of people didn't come back. The Dai Li had really come down hard on talk, that year.

No, Quong's usual life was much better than that of the poor fools on The Wall. Those sad souls made the poor choice of being born in the Lower Ring. Guardsman Quong was a proud Middle Ring boy, and generations of his family had worn the uniform and guarded the doors at the Palace. It was quietly assumed that he would be a Guardsman, and it came to pass with the sureness of the Avatar Cycle. (That is to say, it was a near miss in modern times after that one incident just before Quong's graduation from the academy, but Father found a way to smooth things over.) Only the best of the Guards were selected for the Palace, and Command had honed the selection process down to such a science that grades and sparring performance were all that were needed. Despite his indiscretions, Quong had always performed well on his official tests, so he had been awarded the armor that the ladies liked even if the helmet was bell-shaped and had a poofy thing on top, and off to the Palace he went.

The main job was making sure that everyone understood and followed The Rules. No talking about the War, especially anywhere near His Majesty, as it might upset the lad's digestion. No one from the Middle or Lower Rings, unless they were in a uniform and had the proper orders, was allowed on the Palace grounds. The lucky Upper Ring'ers were only allowed in with an approved petition or an invitation to a social event, and then they had to be sorted to the proper places, don't you know, because some rooms in the Palace were not for the eyes of mere mortals. (Quong had peaked into a few of those rooms, but he was a just a Guardsman, so he hadn't been able to discern what all the fuss was about, unless fancy pillows with flowers embroidered on them were a bigger deal than he had been led to believe.) Theoretically, someone might try to force entry into the Palace, and that's when the Guard would show what it was truly made of, and display the finest Earthbending the world had ever seen, thank you very much. Practically speaking, though, most of Quong's time was spent checking invitations, glaring at illegally parked carriages, and admonishing the servant girls about what supplies they were allowed to pinch.

That last one was a bit tricky. Official policy was that actually spanking the servant girls, even the cute ones, was against The Rules, but threatening to spank was absolutely all right, so long as the Dai Li didn't hear it, because the robed creeps took such things far too seriously. No need to get a girl made into a new Joo Dee just because you liked the way she looks and wanted an excuse to be stern with her.

It was all so simple. Yet, somehow, Quong's nice world had fallen apart today.

He had been lecturing one of the girls, the one with the soft brown eyes and her hair all done up in a swirl, about pinching discarded candles that hadn't yet melted down to the size of a coin, when the troubles happened. The day before had been busy enough, what with a High Alert being called on account of an "incident" at The Wall, and now today word was that the Avatar himself was in the Upper Ring but _didn't _have an invitation just yet. Still, it was nothing much to Guardsman Quong. His main concern was that, as he was threatening the cute servant with a spanking, he leaned against the wall because that armor could get heavy, at times, and he misjudged where the wall ended and where the little alcove began. It was all the servant girl's fault, anyway, no matter how soft her brown eyes were, because she had been dusting the urn on the table in that little alcove, and if she had done a better job Quong was sure that he wouldn't have landed on the big pot-thingy and crushed a symbol of the peace between Ba Sing Se and the Si Wong Desert tribes into dusty pieces.

The servant girl had gasped, and run away. Quong had cursed, because he was lying in pieces of urn and table, and he couldn't even remember the girl's name so that he could pass the blame properly.

The crash had brought attention, of course, and the commander had been very sorry that he was going to have to report the incident. He claimed that Quong understood, and Quong was tempted to say that no, he was a little fuzzy on the specifics, but one didn't say such things to commanders. It was only after Quong was on his way and back on patrol that he realized the enormity of the problem.

He hadn't just crushed an urn. He had crushed a piece of Ba Sing Se _culture_.

The Dai Li were big on _culture_.

That heavy thought had weighed on Quong all day, plus the usual weight of his stupid-looking armor. It was all he was thinking about later that night, when he was working the door at the King's latest fancy party, checking invitations and making sure that no riffraff crashed the Big Bear Bash. The Dai Li didn't, exactly, handle problems. They specialized in making problems go away.

Quong had a nasty suspicion that he had become a problem, and the Dai Li were going to make him go away.

No more guarding, no more helmet shaped like a bell, no more terrorizing the girl with the soft brown eyes. He thought about this while he did his job like a steam-powered automaton from the Fire Nation, repeating the regular, "Invitation please," line to every partygoer.

Then one went off script, and flashed a shiny piece of paper. "I think this will do."

Quong woke from his waking sleep (however that worked), and looked at the guest in front of him. Oh, rather, it was more than one. The girl in front of him was a child, short and pale but otherwise no different from any other Upper Ring'er. The second girl was taller and older, with darker skin than her companion, and didn't stand quite as gracefully as a lady her age should. The little one was waving the shiny paper, and her eyes were milky but decidedly _not_ soft.

Her paper had the seal of the Bei Fong family in all its glittery-ness.

Oh. _This?_ This was why they needed an intelligent man like Quong on Door Duty. The Rules said you had to have an invitation, yes, but there were Old Rules that superseded The Rules. Even the Earth King bowed to the Old Rules. The Bei Fongs were an Old Rule unto themselves, and the short girl standing there now with a haughty but unfocused expression was probably a cousin to the Earth King himself, seven times removed or somesuch. The Bei Fong name was as good as an invitation, never mind their shiny papers.

But Quong was probably going to be Dai Li food, and never get a chance to see the servant with the soft brown eyes again, and so he decided that he would truly enjoy the power of being a Guardsman before he was made to go away. "No entry without an invitation," he said in his most professional voice. "Step out of line, please."

Oh, the little girl didn't like that! "Look, the Pangs and the Yum Soon Hans are waiting in there for us. I'm going to have to tell them who didn't let me in."

Ooh, the Pangs and the Yum Soon Hans, too? Well, if was going to go down, at least it would be glorious. They would speak for years of how Guardsman Quong ticked off the three richest families in the Earth Kingdom! Perhaps the Dai Li wouldn't even get a chance to make him go away! "Step out of line please," he all but sang.

And wouldn't you know, the girls stepped away. Ha! Take that! Even the Bei Fongs stepped aside when Guardsman Quong said, "Step!" Why was he worrying about the Dai Li? They couldn't handle Guardsman Quong! If Long Feng himself showed up asking about some stupid urn, Quong would show that oily mongoose-adder what being a Guardsman was all about!

More comfortable in his armor than ever before, Quong continued to check invitations. Oh yes, that one could enter, and that one, and that one, too. All invitations in order. And good thing, or these fancy types would have Guardsman Quong to deal with!

That's when Long Feng appeared like a ghost right beside Quong. Without a word, the smart and very, very respectable Grand Secretariat led the Bei Fong girls into the party. Quong barely even remembered bowing. What stuck most in his mind was the cool look on Long Feng's face, and the way the mismatched girls stuck their tongues out at him as they glided by.

Well, at least he wasn't going to be made to "go away" because of a stupid urn.

That was something to be proud of, by the First Mud.

For Guardsman Quong, life would be taking a sudden stop in Ba Sing Se.

**END**


	106. Tokka Week Bedtime

**Bedtime**

The Western Air Temple had been dead for a century. Its people were killed in evil, purging fire. This would, to many, call for a bit of reverence when walking the temple's ancient halls. At least a little mourning would have been acceptable, as well.

Sokka and Toph didn't do _acceptable_.

Something they did do, and were doing right now, was Sokka charging down one of the hallways while laughing like a maniac, with Toph hoisted up on his back pointing and waving around a small dark knife that had been her one-of-a-kind 'meteor bracelet' before she used her Metalbending to temporarily reshape it. Toph herself was showing off her multi-tasking skills by screaming, "**CHAAAAAAAAAARGE!**" underneath her own wild laughter.

This wasn't even the most irreverent thing they had done _today_.

The rampage stopped amidst the dormitories, just outside of Toph's room. The room itself was no different, visually, from any other cell that had served the Air Nomad Nuns a century ago. Those long-dead Airbenders, and now Sokka, might have been surprised to discover that this particular room was indirectly connected by various architectural features and stone structural supports to every other spot in the entire main temple, but on this particular night, Toph was unable to feel those connections.

Sokka walked inside the room and deposited Toph onto the bed. He was very careful of her feet. "There you go," he said. "Tomorrow's supposed to be your last healing session with Katara, right?"

Toph nodded. "I _can't wait _to see right again."

"I bet Zuko can't wait, either," Sokka chuckled. "I mean, all in all, you throwing rocks at his head every day that you still can't walk isn't that bad a punishment, but the way he gets all pouty about it would make me feel sorry for him if it wasn't so funny."

Toph sniffed with disdain. "Hey, he's the one who burned my feet, and he came here to rough it with us. And the stuff I throw at him aren't even real rocks, just tightly packed sand and dust."

Sokka rolled his eyes, forgetting that Toph wouldn't be able to see it. "Oh yeah, big difference. I'll have to keep that in mind." He stretched the kinks out of his arms and back, and sighed. "You're not much heavier than a young tiger seal, but it's been a long day. I'm pooped."

"Aren't you going to tell me a bedtime story?" Toph's voice was higher-pitched than usual, and wibbled as she spoke.

Sokka snorted. "Yeah, sure. There was once a girl named Toph who rode around on her friend Sokka all day. Then she went to sleep, and he had an apple before turning in himself. The end. Most epic story you've ever heard, right?"

Toph leaned back on her bed. "No, really, what you got? I never heard a good bedtime story that didn't have to do with obedient young women in silk. Tell me something _really _epic. I bet the Water Tribes have tons of stuff like that."

"I thought you said that Water Tribe slumber parties must stink?" Sokka crossed his arms. "I told you a great story that time!"

"A _ghost _story. And yeah, that stunk. Tell me something more adventure-like; I kind of miss fighting evil all the time. Hey, I'll even help you."

Sokka considered that, and sat down on Toph's bed. "Well, I guess I can give it a try..."

* * *

"_All right, so, um, there was this hero. Strong, brave, respected, a great leader. And had, like, the best sword ever. Seriously, it was beautiful._"

"**And her name was Seong Gyo Gi Gye!**"

"_Her name was... wait, who's telling this story?_"

"**Like I said, I'm helping. I want to hear a story, not a weaponsmith's spring catalog.**"

"_It's summer._"

"**It's boring. Now, tell me about Seong Gyo Gi Gye!**"

"_All right. So... okay, she was, like, born in this village in the middle of an enchanted forest. An evil enchanted forest. Seriously, the forest was completely filled with evil spirits. Also, it had savages in it, criminals from the village who ran away and lived like animals. That village was such a lame place to live that the people pretty much gave up on life, stopped hunting, stopped getting married, stopped having kids, and stuff. So Seong Gyo Gi Gye was the youngest person in the whole village. But she was pretty tough, and hadn't give up yet, so she would go hunting in the forest to find food for the people, and she was the only one who could come back out alive again._"

"**Why?**"

"_What?_"

"**Why was she able to survive? It sounds like a nasty place.**"

"_Because she was just that good, that's why!_"

"**That's kind of tough to swallow. Ooh! How about she's not really human? Her father wasn't really her father, because her mother had a dream about a Forest Spirit one night and then after that she was having a baby! Seong Gyo Gi Gye was half-spirit and that's why she was so awesome and dangerous! And her father never liked her, even though he thought she was really his daughter, because she was so different from what he always wanted. Her mother tried her best, but she wasn't smart or cool enough to handle her daughter.**"

"_Okay, that will work, I guess. Ooh, and her hair was white!_"

"**I take it that's important?**"

"_Very important. Trust me. Anyway, the Spirits didn't like that she was always invading their turf, so they went after the village. They started stealing people away, one person at a time, and burning the characters of Seong Gyo Gi Gye's name on the outside of the houses that were raided._"

"**And sometimes the houses weren't long enough for all the characters, so they'd leave 'Seong Gyo' on one side and 'Gi Gye' on another.**"

"_Okay, kind of an unnecessary detail there, but whatever amuses you. So, finally, the villagers got fed up with it all and decided to exile Seong Gyo Gi Gye from their community and cast her into the forest. Her parents didn't try to stop it, but they did give her some stuff. Her mother gave her an old, rusty family sword that wasn't sharp but was still very solid. Her father gave her a strong rope._"

"**A rope? That's it? And wait, I thought the sword was all awesome and beautiful.**"

"_Shush up, I'm building towards something, here._"

"**Fine. What was she wearing?**"

"_Wearing?_"

"**Yeah! That's an important detail.**"

"_Okay. Well, you know what, I'll let you decide._"

"**Sweet! She was wearing a hunting dress! Don't give me that look, Water Tribe, there is too such a thing. It's sturdy, and the dress is slit to let you move in it, and then you wear pants underneath that you tuck into your boots. Any preferences on the color?**"

"_Ooh! Um, white. No, black! No, green and blue! Yeah, dark green and blue. Okay, so she set out into the forest, and decided that as long as she was kicked out by the people she was taking care of, she'd totally show them what was what and find a way out of the forest for them. She followed her normal hunting trails, and journeyed deep into the forest. Suddenly, she met a... um..._"

"**One of the savages! He jumped down from the trees on top of Seong Gyo Gi Gye, and tried to wrestle her sword away from her! Only she wouldn't give it up, so they wound up on the ground, rolling through the leaves and bushes, until finally they both dropped the sword, and had to stop and catch their breath. The savage turned out to be a boy about Seong Go Gi Gye's age, the son of two of the criminals who lived in the forest. He was smart, and so when all the other savage kids got mixed up in the forest's dangers, he would be patient and observe things and figure out how to stay alive.**"

"_Huh. Why did he attack her, then?_"

"**She was a freaky girl with white hair and a sword sneaking through his forest. What was he supposed to think?**"

"_Hm, good point. So, once they got the introductions out of the way, they figured out that they could help each other. The boy... um, his name was Luo... would show her the way through the forest, and in exchange he could join the village when they all escaped. His weapon of choice was this sweet hand-scythe he made from a tree branch and sharpened bone. He started leading his new friend out of the forest, when they encountered a... uh..._"

"**A Tiger Spirit! It popped out of this evil tree that had carvings all over it and was worshipped by the savages! All the trails and paths in the entire forest were pulled towards this tree, and so Seong Gyo Gi Gye and Luo didn't have a choice and had to face it!**"

"_Wow, that actually sounds pretty familiar. Anyway, the Tiger Spirit attacked them, and the kids had to fight it! I don't know if you've ever faced a cat hunter, but those suckers are fast and strong, so both the boy and the girl were having a hard time of it and were pretty much stuck helping each other to dodge the thing, never mind that it was a spirit and could do all kinds of crazy stuff like disappearing and shooting light thingies. But then, they got this idea. They tied Seong Gyo Gi Gye's rope around the handle of Luo's scythe and then split up, so while Luo distracted the Tiger spirit by moving and running like its usual ghost-prey, Seong Gyo Gi Gye twirled the scythe and threw it around the spirit's legs. The rope was made from plant fibers from the forest, so it could hold a spirit. Tied up like that, the Tiger Spirit could only roar at them, but it was already struggling to get free, so Seong Gyo Gi Gye took her sword and stabbed it right in the head. The Tiger Spirit was banished from the physical world, and its Spirit Blood soaked into the sword's blade and fixed it all up. The blade was made sharp enough to cut the wind, and it became sparkling red like a ruby._"

"**Did it feel like a ruby, too?**"

"_Sure. Only stronger. So they kids kept going through the forest, and other spirits came after them, but with Seong Gyo Gi Gye's sword, and Luo's knowing all the spirits' ways, they were able to defeat them all. They didn't kill all the spirits, though, because only the evil ones attacked them. They ignored the good spirits, and the good spirits ignored them back, so it was all cool there. The kids eventually got to the forests' edge, and found that it was completely closed off to them. The ghosts of all the villagers who had been taken since the beginning of time were all locked together like a fence, and Seong Gyo Gi Gye would have to destroy one of them in order to get through._"

"**Wow! That's awful! And I bet Seong Gyo Gi Gye's real father was there, too!**"

"_What?_"

"**Yeah, the other evil spirits were ticked off at him for creating their worst enemy, so they used him as the lock on the ghost-fence. Seong Gyo Gi Gye and Luo walked around the whole perimeter of the forest, looking for a gap, and saw the spirit because he didn't look like a person, he was a Wolf Spirit!**"

"_Oooh! Did he say anything?_"

"**Yes. He told Seong Gyo Gi Gye that he was her true father, and that he wanted her to use her ruby sword to kill him, so that the fence would break and all the ghosts would be freed, and she could leave the forest.**"

"_No way!_"

"**He did! Luo offered to do it for her, but Seong Gyo Gi Gye was strong enough to handle it herself. She bowed to her father, thanked him for everything, and then stabbed him with the sword. He screamed like a little kid, and then faded away, and the chains holding the other ghosts fell and they all flew to freedom. Seong Gyo Gi Gye and Luo stepped out of the forest, and felt the warm sun on their skin for the first time.**"

"_Aw, that's so bittersweet! They're free, but they had to kill her father to do it!_"

"**Are you... are you crying?**"

"_No. I just have sniffles. ...anyway, Seong Gyo Gi Gye and Luo went back to her village, now that all the evil spirits were dead or driven away, and led them out of the forest. They made a new village right next to a river that was great for fishing, and the people elected Seong Gyo Gi Gye their new Chief. And she lived happily ever after-_"

"**With Luo, who she married, and they had eight kids. But that probably wasn't the end, because even though they were happy, they liked to leave the village and travel sometimes, just the two of them, banishing evil spirits who might hurt people. They lived good lives... and long lives... and their kids all became... heroes of their own stories.**"

"_But those, my good Toph, are tales for another day._"

* * *

Sokka smiled and looked up at the ceiling of Toph's room. That was a pretty cool story. He especially liked the idea of the fence made of ghosts, and decided he was going to try drawing it as soon as he got paper and a brush set. He could make the center of the image the Wolf Spirit who turned out to be the girl-hero's father. That would be dramatic, and wolves were pretty cool. Maybe he'd depict the ghost-chain so that it spiraled around, the better to fill up the paper. "Hey, Toph," he said, easing out of his own thoughts. "How many ghosts do you figure it took for... Toph?"

The girl leaning heavily against him didn't respond. Angling his head forward, Sokka saw that her eyes were closed.

Oh, you had to be kidding.

"Toph? Toph? Wake up. You're cutting off the circulation to my leg. Toph? ...you're going to make me stay here all night, aren't you? Great. I wish I had taken a potty break before."

**END**


	107. Seeds

**Seeds**

Farmer Lee woke up before dawn, just like always.

The air was cool, but that was expected. Though winter's full bite had waned, spring was not yet here. Things would start growing soon, and that meant much, but one specific need was foremost in Lee's mind: It was time to plant the seeds.

He had been born on this farm, had grown up on it, had lived his whole life on it. He would likely die on this farm, and that was fine. It was a good farm, had been in his family for generations. That there was no one to whom Lee could pass the farm was no concern. It wouldn't go to waste. It would either be divided up amongst his neighbors, or reassigned and a new family would start a farming dynasty here.

Though he lived in the green lands between the Outer and Inner Walls, Lee's farm was still technically in Ba Sing Se, and there was oversight for everything. Even the farms that fed the people.

Especially the farms the farms that fed the people.

As Lee ate his cold breakfast, he thought back to two days ago. The official who visited could have been in the army, or a member of the bureaucracy. Either way, he had worn a uniform, and that was enough for Lee. The official had brought news from the Wall and permission for Lee to leave his farm, but while it was appreciated, it was also unnecessary.

It was time to plant the seeds, after all.

So Lee left his little House just as the light of the sun began rising. Normally, Lee didn't get to work so early, but the huge crack in the Outer Wall started the sunrise earlier, so Lee took advantage of it. He pulled The Cart out of The Shed. He had checked the wheels a few days ago and all was well. As Lee began hauling the sacks of seeds out of The New Shed and stacking them into the cart, flashes and tiny bursts of flames began lighting up around the crack in the Wall. It had been like that every day this week. People fighting a war, no doubt. No one ever said, 'war,' but Lee lived within sight of the Outer Wall. There was a war. Or wars. Could be either, really. He didn't keep track, these days.

The sunlight shined through the crack, and Lee got to work.

The air heated, but not too much. That was good. I meant that the soil was soft, but not warm. Hours went by, and Lee dug his shallow holes and dropped his seeds. The flashes and fires continued over by the crack in the Outer Wall, but now they were obscured by both the daylight and huge clouds of dust. Those clouds went hither and wither across the horizon, and even seemed to get closer to Lee's land at one point, but he paid it no mind. Wars come and go, but the people of Ba Sing Se had to eat and so the seeds had to be planted.

Lee was getting ready to take a break when he heard the wailing. He turned to find a stocky man in a topknot stumbling across the farmland.

He wore armor: black, red, gold armor.

He also walked like a drunk, carrying the flopping body of another armored man, this one young beneath the smears of dirt and bloody on his face. "My son," the intruder wailed with tears streaming out of glassy eyes. "They killed my son!"

Lee watched as the intruder approached.

"He's dead! Dead! They killed him! I brought my boy to this war and now's dead!" His voice bellowed, snot ran down his face, and his heavy footsteps kicked up the dirt as he meandered over to Lee. "They killed my son!"

The intruder fell to his knees, but still kept hold of the body in his arms and raised it above the dirt.

Lee finally walked over and spoke for the first time in two days. "I's sorry. 'S hard to lose a son."

The intruder continued to sob. Lee went over to The Cart, to the burlap bags of seeds within, and grabbed the only open sack. He spilled the seeds out onto the ground and brought the empty bag over to the intruder, to lay it out flat on the dirt. "Put 'im down 'ere."

The intruder's tears didn't stop, but he did quiet as he laid the body on the bag. The man looked forlornly down at the stilled body, and Lee made a decision. "You takin' y'boy back?"

The intruder sighed. "I cannot get him past the Outer Wall. We've been driven back."

Lee didn't even wonder who 'we' was. "I can take 'im to the cemetery. 's over the hill. We don't plant there." He paused, and then added, "I buried m'boy there. He was a solja on the Wall. 's a nice cemetery. Gots trees."

The intruder's eyes went wide, and he looked up at Farmer Lee as though seeing him for the first time. He shifted in the dirt and went down into a full kowtow at Lee's feet, pressing his forehead into the loose soil. "You have my eternal gratitude. I swear to you, I will end the siege! No more sons are lost in Ba Sing Se. I swear I make this happen."

Farmer Lee shrugged. "M'kay."

The intruder got up at that point and began making his way back off Lee's land. Lee waited until the armored figure was gone, then lifted the body of the youngster over to The Cart. It took some effort; the body was quite heavy in its armor, but Lee had spent all his years working the land, and the strength had not left his limbs yet. Then he began dragging The Cart along the way to the cemetery. He had other planting to do, now.

He could lay the seeds tomorrow.

**END**


	108. Filling the Gap

**Filling the Gap**

_"I don't ever want to be a mom."_

_No matter what her daughter's intentions might have been, Ursa decided not to take the declaration personally. "And why do you say that, Azula? Raising children can be very rewarding."_

_Azula puffed out her cheeks and crossed her arms, just like she always did when she was feeling aggressive. "Because being a mom is like being a servant. You spend all your time watching over Zuko and me, but any servant could do that, and you can't even teach us Firebending. I want to be someone important. Dad says that I might even be Fire Lord someday." She gave a little stamp of her foot and said, "I will never be a servant to anyone."_

_Ursa let all of that pass through her, like water passing down a river bed. She wasn't always successful at keeping her calm around her daughter, and sometimes a firm voice and a strong grip were the only things that would get through to the little girl, but Ursa sensed that in this situation, Azula would take any outrage as a sign of victory. "I think you have the wrong idea of what a mother does, then. You can choose not to have children, but a smart girl like you needs to make an informed decision. Mothers are more important than you realize."_

_Azula just rolled her eyes._

_"Let me explain, then." Ursa sat down on the grass of the garden, and pulled her daughter into her lap. "In the Fire Nation, family is very important. We pattern our ways on the dragon clans, on how they work together for the greater good of the group. A mother is an important part of the family. I watch over you and Zuko, yes, but that isn't __just_ to make sure you obey the rules. I watch, and I see what kind of people you are growing to be. I learn your personalities, your dreams and your hopes, your strengths and your weaknesses. I try to make sure you grow into strong adults, and also happy adults. I keep an eye on what you learn, and make sure your schooling is properly preparing you. I keep your father aware of everything, and try to balance his own goals and dreams with yours. I also help him, keeping an eye on his own life and dreams, and step in with advice or action when I see the need." Ursa paused briefly, wondering how to explain to Azula the concept of a marriage without love, of a husband who considered his wife a burden, of a person so destructive he would rather his own dreams died than those of others succeeded.

_She found no answer, and so finished with, "If you don't want to be a mother, you don't have to, Azula, but you're so smart and perceptive that I think you would raise wonderful children if you put your mind to it, and you could manage a family that would be the most successful in the Fire Nation, even if you never became Fire Lord."_

_Azula considered that, her eyes narrowing as she turned the words over in her mind and dissected them. As troublesome as Azula was, Ursa couldn't help but feel a fierce pride in her daughter's intelligence. True, she lacked the gentleness and empathy of Zuko, but Zuko himself lacked courage and the ability to think things through. Ursa highly doubted Ozai's assertions that he would one day be Fire Lord, but if it did somehow come to pass and then the crown passed on to Zuko, her children would need each other to form a balanced whole that would bring the Fire Nation to greatness._

_Unfortunately, Azula had a way to go before she could play her part, yet. "I think you're wrong," the little girl said as she shoved out of Ursa's embrace. "It must be nice for you to think you're important, but I don't think you really do all that much. I'm never going to be a mom."_

_With that, Azula bounced away to go find some manner of amusement, and Ursa sighed to herself, alone._

* * *

"And what of Princess Ursa?"

Ozai turned from his examination of the Temple Hearth and gave a thin grin to High Fire Sage. "She has paid for her crimes. No one will ever see her again."

The older man seemed to be expecting more, but Ozai let him wait. He felt no need to discuss the woman who was once his wife, and the Sage didn't need to know of her exile, just that she was out of the picture. Finally, the High Sage let the matter go with a shrug and said, "Very well. So you and your children are the sole remaining members of the Royal Family in the Capital. You will need to rule until Iroh returns."

Ozai lost his smile at the mention of his failure of a brother. "And so we come to the reason for my visit. I didn't just come to inform you of my father's murder. There is a complication in the succession. Tell me, what is your greatest duty as High Fire Sage?"

"To oversee that the Fire Nation honors the spirit of the Flame, of course."

"Indeed." Ozai took a breath and readied himself for what was to come next. This would be the most important conversation of his life, the turning point in his journey to the height of power. For so long, he had been held back by everyone around him, by futile concerns for his family, but no more. Now, it was time for him to rise as a lone dragon in the sky reaching for the sun. "And yet both my father and my brother have drifted from that path. Iroh's flame died with his son, and now he wanders lost in the world, refusing even to send word of when he expects to return. My father betrayed our nation's secret histories by trying to return Roku's bloodline to our family, an act of weakness that housed his very killer under his own roof. He coddled Iroh in his weakness and spent his ire on my heir, and so invited the wrath of Ursa. He couldn't even defend himself from her. It strikes me, High Sage, that the spirit of the Flame is in danger of dying in my family."

The older man stroked his beard, listening passively to Ozai's allegations. "And for what purpose do you raise these speculations, my Prince? The loss of the Royal Family would be… disconcerting for our people."

"It occurs to me," Ozai said slowly, "that it is my duty to redeem my family. Your order must be given more freedom to operate, to administer itself, and a donation from the Royal Family's wealth can be made to expand and further glorify the Capital Temple. After all, I need your help to restore the spirit of the Flame to the Fire Palace. But to do that, I must be named as the Fire Lord, indisputably. You know that Iroh has always disapproved of your involvement in politics. He would force you to towards fundamentalism, to the old weak ways. And I'm sure that if my father had realized that, he would have made some provision to pass the crown to me. It is our duty to honor his need to redeem himself, and to return the leadership of the Fire Nation to the proper path."

Ozai waited patiently for the High Fire Sage to speak. Rushing the older man would be a mistake, the kind that Ozai might have made in his younger years before all the betrayals- Ursa's, Zuko's, Azulon's- had taught him the value of playing the long game. Ozai was different now, ready to ascend.

Finally, the High Sage said, "I admire your wisdom, Prince Ozai. Perhaps your father _did_ make some provision, a whisper in my ear that we kept secret so as not to dishearten Iroh while he sought victory. Now that Iroh has failed, this secret must be revealed, for the good of the Fire Nation."

Ozai grinned and bowed. "It is good to know that we are of one mind."

* * *

Azula's white funeral outfit was utterly spotless, and every strand of hair was in its proper place. This was satisfactory to Azula, because to her, less than perfect was less than acceptable. Considering that she was perfect in every way, it was the world's duty to match her perfection; it owed her no less. And considering how often Da- _Father_ approved of her Firebending progress, of her strength of body and mind, the world would do well not to earn her wrath by disappointing her.

Naturally, Azula had selected for herself companions who would likewise never disappoint her. "Mai, Ty Lee," she addressed them in her rooms in the palace.

Mai, of course, waited quietly, but Ty Lee hopped forward to hug Azula and cried out, "I'm so sorry about your pa-pa and your mom! I'm here for you! Cry if you need to!"

Azula extricated herself from the embrace and gave Ty Lee an approving nod. "I don't cry, but I'm glad to hear that you understand your role. I need you- both of you- to be more than just my friends, now."

Ty Lee nodded heavily and looked like _she_ was about to cry, but Mai just raised her eyebrows and started to look intrigued.

Azula continued, "Zuko and I are heirs to the throne, now. We all know Zuko is a dum-dum, so even if he somehow gets to be Fire Lord someday, I'm obviously going to have to do all the real work around here. So I need to be as strong and as smart as I can- which is _very_ strong and smart- and sacrifice what I must for the greater glory of my family." She paused for a moment, wondering how to phrase what she had to say next in a way that wouldn't reveal weakness, a way that would be... perfect. "My family lost a lot last night, and now we have gaps in our clan structure. My father is going to be Fire Lord, so we can't bother him with trying to fill those gaps. And Zuko's a dum-dum. Therefore, it falls to me to handle those things, as well as preparing myself to be a possible Crown Princess. I'll need your service, girls. I'll need you to always follow my orders. I need you to always be thinking about how you can provide me assistance. I'll need your unquestioning loyalty."

Ty Lee nodded again, squeezing her hands into fists and crying out, "I'll always be there for you! I'll never leave you alone!"

Mai stayed silent.

Azula stepped close to her silent friend, and reached out a hand to stroke her face. "Mai, I'll especially need your help with Zuko. You know he's not strong, and that he's easy to trick. I'll need you to watch out for him, along with me. You can help him be better, and even better, you can tell me when he fails or is going to fail. He's always so jealous of me, but you can keep him from running away. For his own good, of course. You can do that for me, right?"

Color had come to Mai's cheeks the whole time Azula had been speaking of Zuko, and at the prompt, she said, "Y- yes. I can help with Zuko. And you. You can depend on me."

"Perfect." Azula stepped back and gave a single clap of her hands. "You're both such good friends. But you should also understand that because of my responsibilities, I can't tolerate failure. I know it won't ever happen, but if either of you betray me the way my mo- Ursa betrayed grandpa, then I will have to treat you like Traitors to the Crown. But don't worry; I know I can trust you both. There won't be any problems."

And then she drew Ty Lee and Mai into a shared hug, making sure she didn't wrinkle her spotless white outfit in the process.

* * *

After Grandfather's funeral, there was a feast to honor Dad's becoming Fire Lord. Zuko hadn't expected the crowning, because he thought Uncle Iroh was supposed to become Fire Lord next, and no one had explained to him what was going on. Dad was too busy being in charge of everything to worry about little stuff like taking care of his kids, and Zuko was avoiding Azula as much as possible. He was almost afraid of his sister now, because for the first time he was realizing that he couldn't stop her from doing whatever she wanted to him. If she did something really bad, Zuko could maybe tell Dad about it after the fact, but the thought of trying to get Azula in trouble just made Zuko even more afraid.

He sat quietly during the somber feast, and no one talked to him.

Afterwards, he went back to his rooms in the palace's tower and clutched the knife that Uncle Iroh had sent to him until he fell asleep.

It was another year and a half before Uncle Iroh finally came home.

Zuko had been practicing his Firebending when Azula brought him the news. He had been really surprised when she approached him and said, "There's something you should know," because he had pretty much gotten used to being the last to find out about anything. This time, though, Azula explained that Uncle Iroh had finally come back and bowed before Dad, confirming the crowning, and officially retired as a General of the Fire Army. "You should stay away from him as much as possible," Azula had said. "Everyone considers him a failure, and he's clearly weaker than ever. Dad's going to let him sit on the war council as a courtesy, but no one is going to listen to him. If you associate yourself with Uncle, everyone will think the same of you. They'll think of you as a failure, and not listen to anything you say. If you feel the need to talk to someone, talk to me. Or find yourself a pretty girl and stay busy with her. Just try to be strong, this time."

Zuko wasn't sure what to think of all that, but he eventually reasoned that if Azula felt the need to come and talk to him like she respected him, then what she said must be important. He resolved to stay away from Uncle Iroh, after he took care of one little thing.

He needed to express his condolences.

He found Uncle Iroh sitting in the garden, quietly pushing tiles around on a Pai Sho board. Zuko walked right up to him, bowed, and said, "I'm really sorry about Cousin Lu Ten. I miss him, and I bet you do, too. He was a good person to have as family."

Uncle Iroh's face went sad at that, but he smiled and put a hand on Zuko's shoulder. "Thank you, Nephew. And I am sorry that your mother is no longer here. I don't know the details, but I am certain that if she had her way, she would still be here for you. She loved you very much. It's just- it's hard, when loss leaves such wide gaps in our lives, isn't it?"

Zuko nodded, and forgot everything his sister had told him. "If- if you want to talk to someone, because you're lonely, then you could talk to me. I've been reading about the history of our army, because Dad really likes me and Azula to know all about battles and stuff, so maybe we can talk about things like that."

Uncle Iroh's eyes crinkled together as his smile grew to cover his entire face, and he said, "You are a good person, Prince Zuko. I am honored to have you as family, and you can rest assured that I will never leave you, so long as you want an old fuddy-duddy like me in your corner."

Zuko smiled back.

* * *

_Ursa thought the hardest part about leaving would be saying goodbye, but both Zuko and Azula were asleep when she went to them, and only Zuko had managed to open his eyes long enough to register her presence. Ozai hadn't so much as looked at her again once he had what he wanted, and Ursa finally just left him to his desires._

_It was as the ferry was carrying her out of the Caldera that the real pain- the feel of the new gap in her life- hit her. It wasn't for herself that she hurt, but for the people she was leaving behind. Zuko and Azula would have to find their own ways, now, and find people to fill in the holes in their lives. Ozai would be unfettered now, free to do whatever he wanted in his pursuit of power. Ursa just hoped that he was human enough to feel some last loyalty to his children, that once he had his supreme power, some echo of the bonds of family would make him want to preserve his children so that they could someday inherit his legacy._

_The ferry moved on down the river, and the gap between Ursa and her family grew until the gap was the whole of her life._

**END**


End file.
